Brooklyn Nets Fend Off Knicks Late Surge in First Battle of the Boroughs

From the desks of: 

DUTCH PANTS CAN'T JUMP  & THE HOOPS OF FLATBUSH

BATTLE OF THE BOROUGHS

FRIDAY

New York Knicks   109

Brooklyn Nets        113

FINAL

Nets Gain First Victory of New Season

Despite Erasing 19-Point Deficit Kicks Fall to 0-2

• ICYMI: Nets vs. Knicks: A Rivalry in Waiting

Straight out of the school yard.  A lot of pre-game from both camps.  Things get a little gritty and chippy at times, and a little rough and tumble during other times.  Brooklyn cruises to a 64-51 halftime lead, and lead 94-83 after three.  But what follows is another familiarly erratic fourth quarter and near Nets collapse.  Wayne Ellington nails a game tying three at the 4:23 mark.  On the Knicks next possession Ellington drops another three giving the Bockers their first lead of the night.  After a Nets turnover, RJ Barrett converts from mid-range upping the Knicks lead by a 109-106 margin.  But with less than a minute left to play Kyrie Irving takes over.  His jumper at 59.6 brings the Nets within one.  His second straight jumper taken from his favorite spot on the floor gives the Nets a 111-109 lead.  Spencer Dinwiddie then drains two buckets from the stripe to seal Brooklyn's 113-109 victory.

Coach Atkinson, opting for defense, diverted minutes towards Dinwiddie in the closing minutes at the expense of Caris LeVert.  Spencer scores 20-points and ties Irving with a game high five assists in 27-minutes off the bench.  LeVert scores 12-points with four assists in 24-minutes.  For a second straight game Kyrie Irving leads the floor with 26-points, and ties for game high with five assists.  He has now scored 76-points in his first two games with the Nets.  Nets control the glass by a 46-39 margin.  Jarrett Allen, DeAndre Jordan, along with the Knicks Julius Randle, all tie for game high with 11 rebounds.

Six Knicks players score in double-digits.  Allonzo Trier leads the pack with 22-points in 23-minutes off the bench.  After starting the Knicks season opener out of position, RJ Barrett scores 16-points on 9/20 (45%) from the floor, and 0/3 from the free throw line.  Kevin Knox also scores 16-points and is 4/4 from beyond the arc.  Marcus Morris is also a perfect 3/3 from three range.  In fact, the Knicks are a stellar 17/25 (68%) from beyond the arc.