In this game, you saw two teams heading in different directions, as the 2025-26 NBA season is in its home stretch. With the Portland Trail Blazers looking to keep climbing the Western Conference play-in race.
While the Brooklyn Nets went into this contest on a four-game losing streak and looking to see which young players show the most flashes. The outcome of this game was a result that Nets fans had grown accustomed to seeing this year.
Portland would strike first as Jerami Grant made a catch-and-shoot three-pointer. This would be the beginning of the Blazers’ opening the game with a 15-2 run.
This run was spearheaded by Grant, Donovan Clingan, Jrue Holiday, and Toumani Camara. In transition, Holiday would find Camara for a catch-and-shoot three-pointer to cap off this run.
After this play, Nets’ head coach Jordi Fernández called a timeout, seeing his team letting this game go off the rails already.
Brooklyn would regain their composure and start battling back, but not enough to put a significant dent into Portland’s lead. The Blazers would have a 35-20 lead going into the second quarter.
To open the second quarter, Grant inbounded the ball and found an open Camara for a layup, but during this play, Toumani poked Nolan Traoré in the eye, forcing Fernandez to call a timeout.
After the timeout, the Nets seemed to build some momentum as Traoré made a floater, then Danny Wolf made a catch-and-shoot three-pointer, and Nic Claxton converted one of his two free throws. Portland would cool that off quickly as Clingan made a layup and Camara made a putback layup in transition after Deni Avdija missed a layup.
Both teams would trade blows for the rest of the quarter, but the Nets struggled to get any ground on Portland. Leading to the Blazers going into halftime with a 65-42 lead.
The Blazers would start off the third quarter with a pair of free throws by Camara and Avdija, making a driving layup in transition. Brooklyn would respond by going on a 9-0 run, where, during this run, Ziaire Williams made a catch-and-shoot three-pointer. He also stole a pass and took it back for a dunk.
Claxton made a putback dunk and Drake Powell would finish up this run with a layup, cutting the Blazers’ lead to 69-50. Following this basket, Portland’s head coach, Tiago Splitter, called a timeout to make sure his team regained its focus.
In the first play after the timeout, Grant made a catch and shoot three-pointer in the left corner, then Khris Murray would attack off the dribble and back down Traoré in the post for a layup. After this play, Fernandez called a timeout as he was visibly frustrated with Traoré’s lack of defensive effort on that play.
For the majority of this quarter, both units would go back and fourth but the Nets went on to close the third quarter strong. Ochai Agbaji would make a layup, and Ben Saraf made a layup despite getting fouled. Saraf would then make his free throw to cut Portland’s lead to 91-65 going into the fourth quarter.
Brooklyn’s strong close to the third quarter carried on into the fourth. The Nets would open the quarter on an 11-0 run.
Saraf and Wolf led the charge during this run as Saraf made two layups and went 2-for-3 from the charity stripe. Wolf made a three-pointer off the catch and a hook shot, cutting the Blazers’ lead to 91-74.
After the hook shot by Wolf, Holiday made a pull-up mid-range jumper to end the Blazers’ scoring drought. In doing so, halting all the momentum Brooklyn had built up until that point due to Saraf and Wolf.
From that moment on, the Blazers never looked back and went on to beat the Nets 114-95. Portland will travel to Indiana to play the bottom-dwelling Pacers for their next game. Brooklyn is now on a five-game losing streak and will face off against the team with the best record in the NBA, the Oklahoma City Thunder at the Barclays Center tomorrow.
