MILWAUKEE — Maybe the Nets started a new offense this holiday season.
Brooklyn looked destined for another loss offensively.
That was until they turned their fortunes around with a 111-105 come-from-behind victory over a short-handed Milwaukee team missing stars Giannis Antetokounmpo and Damian Lillard at Fiserv Forum on Thursday night.
Cam Johnson poured in 29 points, including a dagger 3-pointer in a 17-5 second-half run that turned a five-point deficit into a shocking victory.
Second-year big man Noah Clowney continued his rise with 20 points, four rebounds, and a career-best 6-of-8 3-point shooting.
Brooklyn took control of the game after Khris Middleton made a free throw to take a 97-92 lead.
The game was tied at 99-all, but Clowney hit a 3-pointer to tie the game with 2:33 remaining.
Nick Claxton drove the baseline, got fouled and hit 1 of 2 from the line to make it 103-99.
Johnson then took a pass from Ben Simmons and hit a long 3-pointer, but was fouled and ended up sprawled on the court, much to the frustration of the crowd.
He also sank free throws to give Brooklyn a 109-102 lead with 48.6 points left in regulation.
The Nets made sure there was no overtime.
“Yeah, just keep getting better,” Nets coach Jordi Fernandez said beforehand. “I thought the ball movement was good. When you run, try to create more chances. When you run, you have to take advantage of certain opportunities. Those are things that we can look at and improve on. And defensively, it's just about being consistent. I think if we do what we're supposed to do, we'll be successful.
Bucks on December 26th. NBAE (via Getty Images)
“I was satisfied with the way we played until the end.” [in Miami]. Of course we want to win, but we can continue to grow with who we are now. And it's exciting because you can see things [taking] Shape in different ways depending on your play style. We always want to get the right shot, but for obvious reasons we have to do it differently. So, overall I'm satisfied. Guys are locked in and continue to challenge themselves and own it. That's good. That bodes well for development.”
They showed that development on Thursday.
During their early-season comeback, they managed to hold on with their offensive prowess, but with that no longer an option, they had to find a way to fight back defensively.
Bucks on December 26th. NBAE (via Getty Images)
It's hard to say what hurt them more, like trading away pick-and-roll point guard Dennis Schroder or losing leading scorer Cam Thomas to a hamstring injury. .
Either way, they've been robbed of both along with starting forward Dorian Finney-Smith and are struggling to score.
But Johnson and Clowney changed that.
The latter made 6 of 9 from deep on Thursday, but only three players under the age of 20 have made more 3-pointers this season: Victor Wembaneyama, Jared McCain and Carlton Carrington. Ta.
Brooklyn took an 88-79 lead on AJ Green's 3-pointer with 10:22 left.
That's when the Nets went on a 13-5 run over the next three minutes to get within one point.
Shake Milton scored 11 points in this blitz.
The three points from Simmons' feed narrowed the gap to one point, 93-92, with 7 minutes and 07 seconds remaining.
Middleton's midrange jumper ended Brooklyn's momentum.
However, his moment of flagrant foul later sent Johnson to charity work, where he reformed.
Wilson's putback on a Keon Johnson miss brought the Nets within 97-96, and moments later, Wilson hit a 3-pointer off Johnson to take a 99-97 lead with 3:40 remaining.
Johnson handed the ball to Brook Lopez, who hit a bank shot from Middleton to tie the game at 99-all.
From there, Clowney broke the tie and the Bucks won.
