Bobcats at Nets
The Brooklyn Nets are winners of three of their last four as they make their way toward the .500 mark and the top spot in the Atlantic Division. The Charlotte Bobcats, who visit the Nets on Wednesday, are coming off one of their more impressive victories of the season and are sitting right behind Brooklyn in the Eastern Conference standings. The Bobcats blew out the Dallas Mavericks 114-89 at home Tuesday and have taken four of the last six.
Charlotte is seeing its outlook improve as Al Jefferson becomes a dominant force on the inside. Jefferson went for 30 points and eight rebounds on Tuesday — his 14th outing of 20 or more points in the last 15 games. The Nets have not had an inside presence like that since Brook Lopez went down but may have finally found a replacement for that role in rookie Mason Plumlee, who posted 22 points and 13 rebounds in a 93-81 win over the New Orleans Pelicans on Saturday. The Nets start out with a smaller lineup before bringing Plumlee and Andray Blatche off the bench.
TV: 7:30 p.m. ET, SportSouth (Charlotte), YES (Brooklyn)
ABOUT THE BOBCATS (23-29): Charlotte is 1 1/2 games behind the Nets for the No. 7 spot in the Eastern Conference while trying to hold off the Detroit Pistons in the No. 9 spot. Jefferson’s hot streak is dragging the rest of his teammates up as well, and the team is 8-7 over the last 15 games. “Coach makes it simple,” Jefferson told reporters. “If I get the ball on the block, I’m either going to score or get somebody else a shot, and that’s what’s been working for us. I don’t have to score the ball every time.”
ABOUT THE NETS (23-26): Brooklyn’s bench is a big reason for it’s uptick in play over the past month, with Plumlee and Blatche getting plenty of help from Mirza Teletovic, Alan Anderson, Jason Terry and Andrei Kirilenko. The Nets did not have a starter score in double figures during the win over the Pelicans, and none of the starters were needed for longer than 25 minutes in the contest. The short shift was a bonus for point guard Deron Williams, who is dealing with a sore knee to go along with the ankles that have bothered him all season. “I just want to get healthy again,” Williams told ESPN NewYork.
BUZZER BEATERS
1. Charlotte took the first meeting at home 95-91 on Nov. 20 to snap a seven-game losing streak in the series.
2. Bobcats G Kemba Walker (Achilles) left Tuesday’s game and is questionable for Wednesday.
3. Williams was held to nine points Saturday, snapping a string of five straight games in double figures.