Hawks at Nets
The Brooklyn Nets nearly pulled off a stunning upset in the finale of their road trip but ended up squandering a big lead and falling to the defending champions. The Nets hope to have better luck at home when they host the struggling Atlanta Hawks on Tuesday.
Brooklyn managed to grab its first win of the season on the four-game trip but dropped the last two legs at Sacramento and Golden State. The Nets held a 17-point, second-quarter lead over the Warriors and were still up three in the final minute before allowing a tying 3-pointer and falling in overtime to drop to 1-9 on the season. The Hawks are losers of three of four since a seven-game winning streak and fell at home 97-96 to the Utah Jazz on Sunday. Paul Millsap missed the potential go-ahead jumper but remains the most consistent scorer on the team and is averaging 20.8 points during the last four games.
TV: 7:30 p.m. ET, FSN Southeast (Atlanta), YES (Brooklyn)
ABOUT THE HAWKS (8-4): Millsap scored a season-high 28 points on Sunday but could not get the final shot of his 10-of-18 effort to drop through the net. “I got the look I wanted,” Millsap told reporters. “It just didn’t go in, man. I guess it wasn’t meant to be.” Atlanta averaged 105.3 points during its seven-game winning streak but was held to 100.5 in the last four contests.
ABOUT THE NETS (1-9): Brooklyn, which lost its first seven games by an average of 11.6 points, fell by two at the Kings and had multiple chances down the stretch to steal the win at Golden State. “My guys left it out there on the line,” Nets coach Lionel Hollins told reporters. “They played their hearts out, and we just didn’t execute perfectly in the times that we needed to to win.” Brooklyn is making a brief stop at home before playing four of the next five on the road, including trips to Oklahoma City and Cleveland bridging the Thanksgiving holiday.
BUZZER BEATERS
1. Millsap was held to 12 points but C Al Horford scored 21 in a 101-87 home win over the Nets on Nov. 4.
2. Brooklyn G Joe Johnson, formerly of the Hawks, is shooting 19.4 percent from 3-point range on the season.
3. Atlanta PG Jeff Teague (ankle) sat out Sunday and is day-to-day.