While the NBA Nets were in Denver facing the Nuggets the G League Nets were north of the border in Missasaugua, Ontario and just like the big club came away with a dramatic win led by a young Brooklyn wing man.
The Long Island Nets defeated the Raptors 905, 97-90, in a come-from-behind win in the Toronto suburbs. The Nets who started off hot, particularly in the paint, but had cooled off by the start of the fourth quarter when the Raptors took a 70-63 lead.
A quick spurt for the Nets, led by Mitch Creek and Theo Pinson, tied the game at 74, but a Chris Boucher put-back slam in transition gave the 905 another lead. Malachi Richardson and Boucher ran another pick-and-roll that led to a Boucher three, giving the 905 another lead at 79-78. Moments later, Boucher chased down down a loose ball fed Richardson for a easy three.
That’s when the Nets two-way, Theo Pinson, once again game to life, scoring easily for the Nets, hitting layups and floaters eventually scoring 13 points in the fourth, including two free throws with 1.4 seconds left to ice the game. The 6’7” swingman finished with 18 points, six rebounds and five assists as well as a block and a steal. After shooting 57.1 percent from three in the first two games of the Nets schedule, he dropped back to 1-of-6 on Friday.
Dzanan Musa scored 21 points —his average after three games— grabbed eight rebounds and handed out an assist. He missed all four of his three-point attempts. The big surprise of the night was Mitch Creek’s double-double. He scored 10 points and grabbed 15 rebounds. Drew Gordon also had a big rebounding night with 13 boards to go along with his seven points. Alan Williams was unavailable (sore right knee).
The 6’8” Williams is the team’s leading scorer at 26.5 points and its leading rebounder as well at 14.5. Pinson is putting up big numbers across the board, averaging 23.0 points, 6.3 rebounds, 5.7 assists and 1.0 blocks in 36.9 minutes.
Long Island returns to the Nassau Coliseum Sunday afternoon vs. the Delaware Red Coats, the 76ers affiliate. The game will be broadcast, starting at 3 p.m., on YES as well as on the G League’s Facebook Live page.
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- 905 crushed on glass, lose first game 97-90 to Long Island Nets - Louis Zatzman - Raptors Republic