NBA: Taurean Prince leads Nets to slow down James Harden, Rockets

By the Associated Press

NEW YORK — Even though James Harden’s jumpers weren’t falling, Nets coach Kenny Atkinson wanted to make sure his players kept defending them.

So he held up a sign with a picture of former Orlando Magic player Dennis Scott, wearing his No. 3 uniform, with a red line crossing through it.

The message came through loud and clear.

“It was a ridiculous sign,” center Jarrett Allen said, “but it made us look and it worked.”

Taurean Prince had 27 points and 12 rebounds, and the Nets slowed down Harden and the Houston Rockets in a 123-116 victory Friday night.

Two nights after scoring a franchise-record 159 points in a victory at Washington, the Rockets couldn’t get nearly enough shots to drop after opening an early 15-point lead. They went 12 for 48 from 3-point range, with Harden a dismal 2 for 16 in the face of an improved Nets defense — and Atkinson’s unusual sign.

“It’s just a defensive coverage we have and we’ve had trouble communicating it to the guys in the past, so we came up with this idea to find a way to communicate so everyone knows,” Atkinson said. “Sometimes if you use humor in things it sinks in a little more with the guys.”

Harden, the NBA’s leading scorer last season, fell to 14 for 70 from behind the arc this season.

“I had a lot of opportunities,” Harden said. “The 3-ball hasn’t been going for me but I’m just going to continue to shoot. I was here yesterday, this morning was here shooting so I’m not worried about it. Those are good shots. Those are shots that I’ve been taking the last couple of years, so even if teams are trying to take the 3-ball away, I’m going to still shoot them.”

Harden finished with 36 points and eight assists, but he was 10 for 31 from the field. Russell Westbrook added 27 points, eight assists and seven rebounds.

The Nets also forced sixth man Eric Gordon to miss all five 3s in his 0-for-7 night. Westbrook was 1 for 6.
“Wide open,” Westbrook said. “Just got to make them.”

Neither Harden nor Kyrie Irving was at his best in a matchup of the NBA’s two leading scorers.

Harden came in leading the league with 36.8 points per game, and scored 59 in the Washington outburst. Irving was at 35.3 per game and had scored at least 26 in all four games, but he finished with 22 points on 7-for-18 shooting with 10 assists.

The Nets didn’t need a big scoring performance from him in a well-balanced effort. Caris LeVert scored 25 points, Garrett Temple had 16 and Joe Harris 15.

Houston led 45-30 early in the second quarter, but LeVert scored 12 points in the period to send the Nets into halftime with a 61-59 lead.

Prince hit two 3-pointers during his run of eight straight points for Brooklyn that extended the lead to 85-73, and the Nets were still up 12 after three.

Westbrook had three baskets early in the fourth as Houston climbed within eight, but then he checked out for a few minutes when Harden came back on, and the Rockets’ push fizzled.

Pacers beat Cavaliers behind Brogdon’s 25 points

Malcolm Brogdon is putting up some big numbers for the Indiana Pacers.

The newcomer filled the box score again Friday night with 25 points, eight rebounds and six assists to push the injury-riddled Pacers to their first home win of the season, 102-95 over the Cleveland Cavaliers.

“I love it. This is a basketball city, a basketball state,” Brogdon said. “People show me a lot of love. I’m going to enjoy playing here.”

Especially as victories come. With their defense tightening and the bench finally finding its stride Friday, the Pacers have won two straight games after starting 0-3.

In avenging a 110-99 loss in Cleveland last weekend, Indiana held the Cavaliers to 37% shooting and forced 16 turnovers in an uncharacteristically low-scoring game.

Jeremy Lamb totaled 21 points and 10 rebounds for Indiana, and Domantas Sabonis added 18 points and 17 rebounds, but it was the second unit that broke open a close game in the fourth quarter.

Reserves accounted for 10 points in a 12-3 run that provided the Pacers an 82-71 advantage, the largest for either side all night. T.J. McConnell, who finished with five points and six assists, faked Collin Sexton into a foul in the lane and completed a three-point play. Rookie center Goga Bitazde, who finished with 10 points and nine boards and blocked four shots, drained his first 3-pointer during the sequence.

“They told me I’ve got to be ready any time,” Bitazde said. “We’re all for each other. We have good chemistry. We’ve just got to try to keep doing this.”

Indiana outscored the Cavaliers by 15 points in the 25 minutes the 6-foot-11 first-round pick roamed the floor. Bitazde seized his opportunity as Indiana played without the injured All-Star guard Victor Oladipo and starting center Myles Turner.

“Goga made huge plays,” Lamb said.

Brogdon drained four clutch free throws in the final minute to keep the Cavaliers at bay. Jordan Clarkson, who finished with 20 points and five assists, missed a 3 from the left side that would have brought Cleveland within three points in the final minute.

Brogdon was acquired in a July sign-and-trade deal with Milwaukee, where he played shooting guard and averaged 15.6 points and 4.5 rebounds.

With his new team, at a new position, the fourth-year professional has upped his scoring to 22.6 points per game along with 10.2 assists and 5.8 rebounds.

Sexton had 21 points for the Cavs, who led 26-19 after the first quarter but fell into a 42-37 hole at halftime. Indiana, which shot 41% for the game and missed 22 of 27 3-point tries, was ahead 68-61 entering the final period.

“I thought our bench did a good job in that first half as well as the second lifting us and getting us going.” Pacers coach Nate McMillan said. “You might have nights like that where your shot’s not falling, and you’re going to need your bench to help you.”

Source: Manila Bulletin