Once again in dramatic fashion, the Brooklyn Nets climbed back to .500 and created a two-game winning streak in a 120-112 victory over the Chicago Bulls. Following his absence from the injury report, Trendon Watford was ruled out just prior to tip-off. Despite the last-second designation, the Nets still pulled off the win.
The first quarter saw no shortage of offensive action. Chicago, one of the league's top three-point shooting cores, displayed exactly that early. Whether it came by way of Zach LaVine, Nikola Vucevic, or Coby White, the Bulls were hitting everything from deep.
Brooklyn was just better.
Cam Thomas exploded for 13 points in the opening stanza, highlighted by multiple connections from deep and a tough and-one finish while receiving a calm seven points from Cam Johnson in a supporting role.
Hot offensive starts for the Nets have come to be expected over the last three games, exemplified by Saturday night's 37-point first quarter on nearly 60% shooting. Despite the continued offensive dominance from Chicago, Brooklyn led by as much as 11, but carried a seven-point advantage into the second quarter.
Keon Johnson, fresh off of being ejected from the Nets' previous matchup against the Memphis Grizzlies, completely took over in the span of just five minutes. The 22-year-old scored 12 points, including two hits from deep, on a perfect 5-for-5 to provide Brooklyn with a major bench boost. The Nets once again built their lead to as large as 17, but the Bulls lethal three-point shooting couldn't be denied.
Chicago shot 56% from three, connecting on 14 of its 25 attempts and virtually answering any offensive threat from Brooklyn with one of its own. Because of this, Thomas' 19 first-half points were all but canceled out by LaVine's own 17. Despite the back-and-forth display, a Dorian Finney-Smith buzzer-beating tip-in generated a 68-60 Nets lead at the halftime break.
Just as Brooklyn cooled down offensively, its season-long issue reared its ugly head yet again. The Nets have struggled in third quarters this season, and the matchup with Chicago was no different. Out of the half, the Bulls ripped off an 11-2 run, largely due to Brooklyn's lack of interior defense. Vucevic reminded fans in attendance that the Nets haven't secured the paint well thus far, as he single-handedly brought Chicago back within striking reach.
Through 26 minutes of action, the veteran big man posted 24 points and 11 rebounds on a perfect 9-of-9 from the floor. Whether from deep, inside or off a second chance, Vucevic couldn't be contained. Eventually, Brooklyn's offense slightly re-emerged, and thanks to another near-buzzer beater from Dennis Schröder, the Nets led 92-90 with 12 minutes to play in regulation.
The Bulls regained a four-point lead off of an ugly 1-of-5 start to the quarter from Brooklyn, which served as a wakeup call. The Nets generated a 10-0 run to push the lead to six around the six-minute mark, but a careless foul put Chicago in the bonus with plenty of game left to play. More back-and-fourth kept the game close, until Thomas decided to display his clutch gene.
In the final two minutes of regulation, Brooklyn's best scorer took over. He went on an 8-0 run all on his own, including two deep-range bombs, one of which came from 33 feet out. Thanks to his heroics, the Nets finally had rebuilt a solid enough cushion to dispatch the Bulls at home.
Now standing at 3-3, Brooklyn hosts the Detroit Pistons on Nov. 3 at 3:30 p.m. EST.
To access the final box score from the Brooklyn Nets' win over the Chicago Bulls, click here.
Want to join the discussion? Like Nets on SI on Facebook and follow us on Twitter to stay up to date on all the latest Nets news. You can also meet the team behind the coverage.
