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Nets' Positives Can't Outweigh Negatives and They Lose to Hawks

For the third time in 10 days, the Nets lost to the Hawks and although there were some positives, including multiple comebacks, they couldn't come up with a win and fell to 2-8.

After a miserable first quarter where they fell behind early and by 15, the Nets kept chipping away at the Hawks lead, bringing it down to the five on two occasions in the middle of the second half but a late surge by Atlanta, particularly Joe Johnson, pushed the Nets back down by 13 with 3:35 left. Then, improbably, the Nets led by Anthony Morrow, cut the lead to three with four seconds left following a Morrow three. The Nets could get no closer as Johnson iced it with two free throws.

For the Nets, Morrow finished with 20 points, shooting 4-for-6 from three. There was another gutty performance by MarShon Brooks, who finished with his first career double-double, 19 points and 10 rebounds, shooting 50% both overall (7-for-14) and from deep (3-for-6). Deron Williams finished with another double-double, 15 points and 14 assists, but also another mediocre shooting performance, going 6-for-17. Another positive was the play of Shawne Williams, who scored 11, including three three-pointers.

Deron Williams admitted his body language recently has been poor. “I gotta do a better job of leading these guys,” he said. “They can’t see me visibly frustrated, because that’s not good for anybody’s confidence.”

The Hawks were led by Josh Smith with 26. Johnson had 22 and Jeff Teague 20.