On Monday in Indiana, the Nets already played like a defeated team.
Wednesday could become official.
Brooklyn lost to the Pacers, 133-111, in front of a crowd of 16,522 at Gainbridge Fieldhouse, a loss that nearly ended their meager postseason run.
The Nets’ tragic numbers, their total losses and Atlanta wins before elimination, have been reduced to two.
The Hawks played in Chicago late Monday and had a chance to pull within one point.
That means the Nets have hope of officially voiding the Eastern Conference play-ins on Wednesday, when they host a rematch against the same Pacers.
Even if they face elimination, it’s hard to imagine it being any worse than Monday.
Brooklyn was trailed by 36 points multiple times despite Cam Thomas scoring 22 points and Trendon Watford scoring 21 points off the bench.
Former Knick Obi Toppin hit a classic 3-point play off Ben Shepard to take a 106-70 lead with 1:20 left in the third, then sank a dunk to make it 108-72 shortly after.
It was a low-energy performance from Brooklyn.
Star guard Tyrese Haliburton led Indiana with 27 points, 13 assists and four rebounds, making 4 of 7 3-pointers.
After giving up the first 17 straight points against the Lakers on Sunday, Brooklyn put up an unresponsive 15 points in the early going on the night.
Thomas and Mikal Bridges (19 points, 6 assists) had the first two buckets of the game, only to see the Nets go on a 15-0 run.
Haliburton was forced into a finger roll by big man Myles Turner, giving Brooklyn an 11-point lead, but they never challenged.
In fact, the deficit was only increasing.
The Nets returned to the locker room up 75-47, their second-most points allowed in the first half of the season.
The only excitement of the night was a melee between Dennis Schroder and Indiana’s Jalen Smith with 5:55 left in the third quarter and Brooklyn leading 87-62.
Schroder drove and was fouled, then flapped around and made contact with Smith’s face, knocking off Smith’s goggles. Smith pushed Schroder down and rolled toward a cameraman sitting courtside.
Veteran referee Scott Wall physically restrained Smith, sending both men into the post.
Both benches remained calm, and after a long six-minute review, Schröder was given a technical and Smith was given a bad second, and he was sent off.
Schroder was predictably booed every time he touched the ball, and with Turner out with a sprain, the Pacers were down two big men.
It didn’t help.
Nets on Monday. USA Today Sports
Brooklyn allowed the next seven unanswered points immediately after the dustup, allowing a 20-9 run, making the game even more open.
The Nets (29-47) fell to six games behind No. 10 Atlanta before the Hawks fell to Chicago.
