Nets end bad ‘trip’ in Salt Lake City

Brooklyn falls in Utah, finishes 1-4 on West Coast swing

December 19, 2023 John Torenli, Sports Editor Brooklyn Daily Eagle

Mikal Bridges and the Nets suffered their third straight loss in Utah Monday night, completing a dismal 1-4 road trip. AP Photo by Rick Bowmer

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Mikal Bridges’ shooting slump continued just as the Brooklyn Nets’ brutal West Coast swing ended.

Bridges went 4-of-16 from the floor and Brooklyn got buried in the second half Monday night in Utah, suffering a 125-108 loss to the Jazz in front of a sellout crowd of 18,206 fans at the Delta Center.

“It’s been a tough road trip for us. Hopefully we learned a lot of lessons,” said Nets coach Jacque Vaughn after watching his squad surrender 71 second-half points to the Jazz.

“I don’t think we played well the whole game, really,” Vaughn added. “Even though we led by five at the half.”

The Nets’ leading scorer, Bridges misfired on 28 of 41 attempts during Brooklyn’s three consecutive defeats to close out a 1-4 road trip.

After opening the extended sojourn with a 131-118 setback in Sacramento on Dec. 11, the Nets (13-13) pulled out a heartening 116-112 victory against former teammate Kevin Durant and the Suns in Phoenix last Wednesday.

Bridges had scored at least 21 points in seven consecutive contests before failing to reach that mark at all on the tail end of this trip.

He had a season-low nine points on 3-of-8 shooting at defending NBA champion Denver last Thursday, put up 18 while going 6-of-17 from the floor Saturday at Golden State and only managed 13 against the Jazz (10-17), who have won three of their last four.

Cam Thomas scored 20 of his 32 points in the second half, Spencer Dinwiddie added 17 points and 11 assists and Nic Claxton finished with 11 points for Brooklyn, which went up 61-54 on Dinwiddie’s eight-footer to open the third quarter before the Jazz took over.

Cam Thomas rises up for one of his five 3-pointers during the Nets’ 125-108 loss to the Utah Jazz on Monday night. AP Photo by Rick Bowmer

By the time Collin Sexton, John Collins and Lauri Markkanen made successive 3-pointers late in the period, Utah had an 86-80 advantage.

Thomas, who went 12-of-23 from the field, including 5-of-7 from long range, drained consecutive 3-balls to keep the Nets within 108-101 with 5:44 to play.

However, Utah scored on its next five possessions while Brooklyn clanged shot after shot, extending the advantage to 120-101 on Sexton’s layup with 2:17 remaining.

The Jazz sank 10-of-16 3-pointers following intermission.

“They went on a run in the third quarter. They hit a lot of 3s and got transition baskets off our turnovers,” lamented Thomas, who scorched the Warriors for 41 points on Saturday.

Sexton and Talen Horton-Tucker had 27 points apiece for Utah, which had lost its previous three meetings with Brooklyn.

The resurgent Jazz will visit Downtown’s Barclays Center on Jan. 29.

“It’s great when guys play in a way that you would envision them playing over a pocket of time,” Jazz coach Will Hardy told the Associated Press.

“It’s even better when they get a night where the numbers show them in a different way that what they’re doing is paying off.”

Whether they were drained from visiting five cities in one week or short on man power due to the continued absences of Ben Simmons (back), Lonnie Walker IV (hamstring) and Dennis Smith Jr. (back), the Nets will be happy to get back to Brooklyn.

Brooklyn had won three straight and six of seven before leaving on its western odyssey.

The Nets will host the first of their four Battle of the Boroughs games against the East River rival New York Knicks Wednesday night on the corner of Atlantic and Flatbush.

“This trip took a toll on us, physically and mentally,” Vaughn ceded. “Hopefully we get a chance to get home, get some healthy bodies.”

Jalen Bruson and the New York Knicks will visit Downtown’s Barclays Center on Wednesday to take on the Nets. AP Photo by Ryan Sun

NOTHING BUT NET: After hosting the Knicks to open a three-game homestand, the Nets will welcome the Nuggets to Barclays on Friday night before opening a home-and-home with league-worst Detroit, losers of 24 straight, on Saturday. … The Nets and Knicks split four meetings last year, with each winning twice on its home floor. Brooklyn had won nine in a row in the series before dropping two straight at Madison Square Garden.