Nets run out of juice in loss to Denver

Out-sized and out-hustled in 112-104 road defeat to Nuggets

November 8, 2017 By John Torenli, Sports Editor Brooklyn Daily Eagle

One night after leading the charge in Phoenix, D’Angelo Russell had a rough game in Denver as the Nets got trounced by the Nuggets in a 112-104 loss. AP photo by David Zalubowski

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The Nets couldn’t come close to matching the defensive intensity, ball movement and clutch shooting they demonstrated during Monday night’s victory in Phoenix.

Instead, they simply looked like a team that was out of gas and, as usual, short on size in a 112-104 loss to the Denver Nuggets in front of 14,058 fans at the Pepsi Center on Tuesday night.

“I don’t think we had the requisite juice. The execution wasn’t good,” Brooklyn head coach Kenny Atkinson admitted, one night after watching his team rally for an impressive 98-92 victory over the Suns in Arizona

“It was like we were walking in mud in everything we did.”

D’Angelo Russell, who spearheaded the Nets’ fourth-quarter charge against Phoenix on Monday, certainly had the most mud on his sneakers following Brooklyn’s fifth loss in six road contests this year.

The 21-year-old point guard managed 12 points on 6-of-14 shooting, missing all three of his 3-point attempts and committing eight of the Nets’ season-high 25 turnovers, denying Brooklyn a shot at its first back-to-back wins since Oct. 20-22.

“Turnovers were such a big issue tonight and then we came out a little lackadaisical and no energy,” ceded Nets forward DeMarre Carroll, who finished with nine points and six rebounds.

“I thought our defense was pretty good, but we kept turning it over and they got easy offense.”

The Nets once again had no answer for the other teams’ most forceful big man as Nuggets center Nikola Jokic lit them up for a career-high 41 points and 12 rebounds in only 31 minutes.

Brooklyn was missing Rondae Hollis-Jefferson due to a hip injury suffered in Monday’s win at Phoenix, but those who tried to stifle Jokic along the interior and beyond the arc appeared helpless as the 6-foot-10 Serbian buried 16 of 25 shots, including a quartet of 3-pointers.

Tyler Zeller continued to show flashes that he might take over the starting center spot from veteran Timofey Mozgov (11 points, six rebounds). The 7-footer scored a team-high 21 points off the bench on 8-of-10 shooting with five boards.

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In other local pro sports news, the Coney Island-based New York Cosmos found out Wednesday morning that they have a friend in U.S. Sen. and Brooklyn resident Chuck Schumer.

Schumer urged the U.S. Soccer Federation to reconsider its decision to deny the once-prominent North American Soccer League professional sanctioning at the Division II level, which it currently holds.

The Federation has decided to drop the NASL into a Division III slot, formerly held by the United Soccer League, which moved up to Division II last year.

The drop in ranking could create a significant decline of sponsors and TV broadcast partners for the Cosmos, who have drawn considerable interest in the local market at MCU Park.

“From the profitable sponsorship deals to the steady job creation that the New York Cosmos have brought to Coney Island and Brooklyn at large, it’s clear that a division two status is a win-win for the region,” said Schumer.

“I’m urging the U.S. Soccer Federation to reconsider its decision and support a division two status for the North American Soccer League so that teams like the New York Cosmos can continue to thrive.”

Despite the ongoing debate, the Cosmos will vie for their third consecutive Soccer Bowl title this weekend in California against the San Francisco Deltas.