Celtics

Nets’ winning streak ends in loss to Celtics

By
comments
Posted on

B

Final: 11/27/2019

L 110 – 121

The Brooklyn Nets took on the Boston Celtics at TD Garden on Wednesday night, and Kyrie Irving did not make the trip. Still, Celtics fans still took the opportunity to boo him as his current team fell to his former, 121-110.

The game started off right with the connection between Spencer Dinwiddie and Jarrett Allen, being electric as always.

The offense was flowing, even better than expected — and then the fouls started. Errors and some questionably blown whistles killed the Nets’ momentum as Boston began to pull away. It started to look like the blowout most expected.

But Garrett Temple had something to say about that.

He went nuclear, hitting three threes in a row to halt the Celtics’ run and get Brooklyn back in it. The second unit for the Nets ate their fill and then some against Boston’s bench and took the lead going into the half.

But Brad Stevens made some defensive adjustments, and things got a lot trickier for Brooklyn. The offense that was humming before began to sputter. Dinwiddie got the superstar treatment, frequently finding himself trapped and his drives contained. The shots were not falling for Brooklyn, but they definitely were for Kemba Walker. He found his groove and never lost it to the tune of a 39-point outing.

The Nets needed to work their way inside and try to get easy shots at the rim, and hopefully some free-throws. But Brooklyn shot 9-for-19 on their attempts from the charity stripe, a gruesome 47.4 percent.

Yikes.

There were attempts down the stretch for Brooklyn to get back into the game, but the lineup decisions did not do the Nets any favors. They ultimately fell, but not without giving the Celtics a fight.

It was not ideal, but it was better than most expected coming into the matchup.

Still, one thing is for certain: Kyrie Irving will be waiting for his opportunity. March 3, in Boston. Mark the date.

In the meantime, however, the Nets will prepare to host the Celtics on Friday — perhaps by shooting some free-throws?

Garrett Temple

A+

The stats: 22 PTS, 8-14 FG, 6-12 3PT, 2 REB, 3 AST, 1 STL, 1 BLK, 2 TO, 31 MIN

Garrett Temple nearly saved this game single-handedly.

He had a huge night shooting the three-ball, and stepped up in key moments when the Celtics started to run away with it. If he could consistently produce like this, Temple could turn into Brooklyn’s version of Danny Green.

Temple is 33 years old to Green’s 32. They are both 6 feet, 6 inches. The main difference, however, is that Green is shooting the ball much more efficiently — but Wednesday could be the beginning of Temple’s ascent.

Jarrett Allen

B-

The stats: 17 PTS, 5-8 FG, 5-12 FT, 14 REB, 3 AST, 1 BLK, 1 TO, 30 MIN

Jarrett Allen looks like the best player on the team — until he gets to the free-throw line.

The blossoming big man has made leaps and bounds forward in nearly every aspect of his game. He’s averaging over 15 rebounds in his last three games, and he added another double-double tonight.

However, a big man in today’s league cannot go 5-12 from the free-throw line. He continues to impress, but he has to convert his free chances better than he did on Wednesday.

Spencer Dinwiddie

C

The stats: 16 PTS, 5-19 FG, 2-8 3PT, 4-5 FT, 3 REB, 11 AST, 1 TO, 29 MIN

Spencer Dinwiddie felt the full force of Brad Stevens’s defensive coaching. 

It is hard to separate if it was Dinwiddie having a bad game or Stevens doing an outstanding job of planning for him — both are probably true — but it resulted in Dinwiddie’s worst performance in a while, and it came at a bad time.

He will have some time to figure out his troubles, though, ahead of Friday’s rematch.

About the Author

Logan Gilchrist

Logan Gilchrist is a student at the University of Nebraska-Lincoln pursuing degrees in both political science and sports media & communication.

Game Recaps

Nets Analysis

Related Articles

News from Around NYC