Jaylen Hands scores 24 as Long Island wins third straight over depleted South Bay Lakers, 143-108

The Long Island Nets continued to turn the page, defeating the South Bay Lakers, 143-108. The win marks the third straight win for the Nets with the team improving to 10-16 on the season and 5-9 at home.

Long Island set a franchise record in total points scored in a game, finishing with 143 points. Meanwhile, the Lakers had only five players available late in the game. Andre Ingram sat out the remaining three quarters due to an arm injury while Javan Felix fouled out.

Fein believes the Net controlling the pace was the X factor in the win.

“We held the pace the whole time,” Fein said following his team’s win. “They [Lakers] got tired, playing with five guys. Felt bad for Coby [Karl], it is hard when you only got five guys available to play. Give them credit for not giving up and waving the white flag. I think our pace really got them depleted.”

Jaylen Hands had a big game, finishing with 24 points, five rebounds, five assists, one steal, and one turnover in 21 minutes of play. The Nets second round pick shot 10-of-13 overall and went 2-of-5 from deep in the Nets win.

Jeremiah Martin, who was signed as a two-way last week, had yet another impressive performance for the Nets in Wednesday’s win. The 23-year-old Memphis product recorded 24 points to go along with five rebounds, four assists, and four steals in 26 minutes of play. Martin shot 10-of-14 overall and 2-of-3 from deep.

Three other swingmen with Brooklyn connections also had good games.

—Justin Anderson, who was recently acquired via trade after being cut after a 10-day deal, finished the game with 19 points, seven rebounds, four assists, and two steals in a team-high 29 minutes of action. The 6’6” Anderson shot 6-of-18 overall and shot 2-of-12 from deep in the win.

—Chris Chiozza, the 5’11” sparkplug point guard who was signed to two-way on January 3, scored 18 points, shooting 7-of-11 overall, 3-of-7 from three.

—Theo Pinson, on assignment from Brooklyn, finished with 10 points, two rebounds, and one assist in 30 minutes of play. Pinson shot 4-of-6 from the field and went 2-of-3 from deep.

“It was a good game,” Pinson said following the win. “As for our team, we moved the ball very well. We did not get caught up with the way they were playing. It was unfortunate they had a lot of guys out hurt but when your depleted like that, you just want to miss and make the game real messy and we did not make that happen.”

Fein and the coaching staff started Chiozza, Pinson, Deng Adel, CJ Williams, and Kasibabu. John Egunu (right ankle soreness), CJ Massinburg (right knee soreness), and Joe Cremo did not play. Egbunu was in a walking boot.

The Nets opened the quarter playing well offensively led by the play of Chiozza and Adel. Despite the strong start offensively, the Lakers attacked the lane with ease and played well under the basket to follow. With 5:48 left in the first, Fein called his first timeout with his team up 16-14.

Long Island began to heat up, going on a 7-0 run to extend their lead to 23-17 with 3:12 remaining in the first 12 minutes of play. The Nets finished the quarter, piling on their lead. Following a Hands dunk, the Lakers head coach Coby Karl received a technical for unsportsmanlike conduct.

At the end of one, the Nets led 40-19.

Chiozza led the team in first quarter scoring with 10 points in eight minutes followed by Martin with eight points in seven minutes of play. As a team, the Nets shot 16-of-29 overall (55 percent) and 3-of-11 from deep (27 percent) in the first. The team recorded only one turnover in the first 12 minutes of play.

The Lakers opened the second quarter slowly climbing back into the game leaving Fein to call a timeout with 7:37 remaining with his team holding a 16 point lead. As the second quarter progressed, the Nets regained their groove and did not rush their shots on the offensive end of the floor.

Despite the well rounded offense, the Nets struggled to take care of the ball late and did not play consistent on the defense end, giving up 31 second quarter points.

At the end of the first half, the Nets led the Lakers 68-50.

Martin led the Nets in first half scoring, recording 16 points to go along with two assists and three rebounds. The Nets two-way scored eight second quarter points, ending the half shooting 6-of-9 overall and 2-of-2 from deep in 14 minutes of play.

As a team, the Nets ended the half shooting 27-of-54 overall (50 percent) and 7-of-23 (30 percent) from deep. Long Island recorded six turnovers in the second, ending the half with seven total turnovers.

The Nets played well in the third quarter. Long Island were patient on the offensive end of the floor while playing consistent defense on the other end. The Nets held the Lakers to 29 third quarter points, finishing the quarter outscoring South Bay 40-29.

At the end of the third, the Nets led the Lakers 108-77.

The Nets controlled the tempo in the final 12 minutes of play, holding a strong lead throughout the quarter. The Lakers struggled to maintain consistent playing energy while the Nets played with more energy, despite leading by double-digits throughout the final 12 minutes.

Sean Marks was on hand for the game, along with Jeff Peterson, his assistant coach. And yes, at one point, he stepped away to take a call.

The Nets play their next game against the Maine Red Claws on Friday, January 24, at 7 p.m.

• Game Report: Long Island Nets 143, South Bay Lakers 108 (with Video) - G League