The Brooklyn Nets held off the Boston Celtics despite a late fourth-quarter surge and All-NBA guard Kyrie Irving’s continued absence, winning 112-107 in an early-day game at Barclays Center.
After falling to the Boston Celtics 121-110 at TD Garden on the evening before Thanksgiving due in large part to All-Star point guard Kemba Walker’s 39-point explosion, the Nets returned the favor with an equally-impressive outing by reserve guard Spencer Dinwiddie.
The Colorado product scored 32 points and 11 assists on 10-of-19 shooting (including 6-of-8 from beyond the arc) in his eighth game stepping up to cover for the injured Irving.
The Duke product, in his first season with Brooklyn after decamping from Boston, had been in Barclays earlier in the day to have his ailing shoulder evaluated, and made a point of sticking around long enough to greet several former teammates with a hug.
Former Celtics teammates embracing Nets guard Kyrie Irving postgame. pic.twitter.com/oCl3rkEXfd
— Christopher Lavinio (@ChrisLavinio) November 29, 2019
Irving saw his new team receive a villain’s welcome from afar Wednesday as fans intensely booed the Australian floor general by proxy at the Garden.
This prompted a response by the polarizing player on Instagram later that night, as much in response to the NBA media’s response to his exit from Boston as the vociferous crowd response.
Friday’s rematch broke Brooklyn’s way however, with continued strong shooting from deep — 17-of-41 for 41.5 % overall — against Boston and balanced play from the other starters and bench.
The Celtics trailed for nearly the entire contest, falling behind by double-digits at several points despite strong showing from Jayson Tatum (26 points, 9 boards) and Kemba Walker (17 points and 6 assists).
Nets didn't need Kyrie, Caris or even KD for that matter. They took down the Celtics 112-107 with Spencer Dinwiddie going off for 32 points and 11 assists.
Brooklyn is now 10-9 on the season, winners in 5 of the last 7. Also, they're 5-0 on Fridays.
— Anthony Puccio (@APOOCH) November 29, 2019
Fourth-year wing Jaylen Brown struggled throughout the match, logging one of his worst outings of the season with only 8 points and 6 rebounds while Daniel Theis was much less effective than in the two teams’ last tilt, scoring only 2 points and 3 boards.
The Celtics nearly found a way to get back into the contest in the final frame’s closing minutes, cutting the lead to just 4, but ultimately failed in their comeback bid, their slow start and uneven play forcing the loss.
Boston next face the New York Knicks at Madison Square Garden on Sunday, Dec. 1 at 2:30 p.m. while falling to 13-5 on the season.