The Nets defeated the New Orleans Pelicans 119-114 on Tuesday, snapping a two-game losing streak at Barclays Center. They improved to 26-53 with three regular-season games left and retained the sixth-best NBA Draft lottery odds.
Seven Nets finished in double figures, led by Trendon Watford, who had 22 points on 7-for-8 shooting with three rebounds and five assists in 23 minutes. It was his second game with at least 20 points this season.
Drew Timmie added 16 points on 7-for-10 shooting with nine rebounds in 29 minutes.
Brooklyn played without Cam Thomas (left hamstring strain), Noah Clowney (right ankle sprain), Cam Johnson (lower back contusion), D’Angelo Russell (right ankle sprain), Day’Ron Sharpe (right knee sprain) and Keon Johnson (rest).
Zion Williamson, CJ McCollum, Dejounte Murray and Trey Murphy III were sidelined for the Pelicans, who entered the night on a three-game losing streak.
The Nets went into the locker room up 54-53 after a first half that featured just two lead changes and one tie. They finally gained separation in the third quarter, where they shot 56% from the field, made five 3-pointers and limited New Orleans to 36.8% shooting.
Brooklyn’s 43 points in the third quarter were a season high for any quarter, and its most points in a third quarter at home since 2020. It was a 97-79 game entering the final frame. New Orleans, who gave up 20 points off 17 turnovers, never truly recovered.
The Pelicans used a 13-2 run to cut their deficit to four with 53.7 seconds left but ran out of time to complete their comeback. They trailed by as many as 20 points on Tuesday.
Antonio Reeves and Karlo Matkovic led New Orleans with 17 points each.
Reece Beekman dished out a career-high 10 assists in his second career start. Dariq Whitehead went 4-for-7 from deep, his fourth straight game with multiple 3s. Brooklyn’s bench dropped 66 points, and each reserve finished in double figures.
The Nets will return to action on Thursday against the Atlanta Hawks at Barclays Center, their final matchup in a four-game homestand.
