NEW YORK _ The Nets blew a 14-point first-half lead, but unlike two nights earlier in their thrilling overtime win against Detroit, they had no answers in the fourth quarter for the hot-shooting hands of Rockets stars Chris Paul, Carmelo Anthony and Clint Capela. That trio led Houston to a 119-111 victory over the Nets on Friday night at Barclays Center.
The Nets trailed by eight points early in the fourth quarter, which was almost identical to the circumstances of the comeback two nights earlier against the Pistons. Caris LeVert came off the bench to hit a 3-pointer with 7:11 left to cut the Rockets' lead to one point. Anthony responded with a 3 at the other end, and LeVert came back with his second straight 3 to pull the Nets within 103-102. LeVert missed a 3 and then Anthony buried one from the right wing, much to the delight of his fans in the building.
After cutting the Rockets' lead to one, the Nets had eight straight empty possessions, missing five shots and committing three turnovers before Spencer Dinwiddie's layup with 1:51 left got them within 111-104. By then, the damage had been done.
Paul led the Rockets (2-4) with 32 points and 11 assists, former Knick Anthony had 28 points and Capela added 22 points and 13 rebounds.
LeVert led the Nets with 29 points and Joe Harris added 18. For the second straight game, D'Angelo Russell, who had 12 points, was rooted to the bench at crunch time.
The Rockets, who lost to the Warriors in seven games in the Western Conference finals last season, came in with a 1-4 record that was surprising even though reigning MVP James Harden was sidelined for the third game in a row by a strained hamstring. So despite the quality of the opposition, the Nets were looking at a chance to build on Wednesday's overtime win against Detroit.
"You hope this is the start of something, the start of playing better in close games, closing games out," coach Kenny Atkinson said before the game. "The more experience we get in those games and the more successful experiences we have, the better for us and the better for our future. It's a heck of a challenge against an elite Rockets team that hasn't started the season great, but I look at how good they are."
The Nets came out on fire in the first quarter, leading by as much as 10 points on their way to a 32-25 advantage at the end of the period. They shot 71.4 percent from the field (15-for- 21), and LeVert and Russell totaled 20 points.
