Nets Top Rockets in Wild Finish, Earn Third-Straight Victory

Brooklyn ended the home-and-home series with Houston 2-0.

Feb 4, 2025; Brooklyn, New York, USA; Brooklyn Nets guard D'Angelo Russell (1) reacts after makes a three point basket during the fourth quarter against the Houston Rockets at Barclays Center. Mandatory Credit: Vincent Carchietta-Imagn Images / Vincent Carchietta-Imagn Images

In the waning seconds of the Brooklyn Nets' rematch with the Houston Rockets, the "lower-level team" delivered an all-time moment.

Ime Udoka, Houston's head coach, likely regretted dubbing Brooklyn as such the moment his team fell to Jordi Fernandez and the Nets for the second straight time, 99-97.

The Rockets led by four with 8.1 seconds to play in regulation until chaos struck the Barclays Center.

Keon Johnson rattled in a triple before Tosan Evbuomwan stole the ensuing inbound pass, who kicked out to D'Angelo Russell. Just as he did during his glory days with Brooklyn from 2017-19, Russell displayed the ice in his veins.

He buried the go-ahead three-pointer, leaving just three seconds for the Rockets to respond. Jalen Green's game-winning attempt missed, completing the Nets' miraculous comeback while handing the franchise its third-straight win.

“When we walked in, Jordi showed us what Ime said [Saturday] night,” Day’Ron Sharpe said via Brian Lewis of the New York Post. “They look at us like we’re not competition.”

The victory continues what's been a stellar end to January and beginning to February for Brooklyn. Amid countless injuries and lineup changes, Fernandez's gritty culture has willed the Nets to three impressive victories.

As Cam Thomas, Noah Clowney and Cam Johnson remain out, it's been Brooklyn's all-around contributions that have resulted in the successful stretch.

Johnson's late three gave him 22 points on the night. Evbuomwan added 14, as did Nic Claxton. Tyrese Martin and Russell combined for 20.

While not as impressive as the six players in double figures that the Nets posted in Saturday night's win over the Rockets, the balanced effort reveals two things: Fernandez is able to do more with less and Brooklyn's depth has the potential to be a consistent winning factor.

Interior defense does continue to be an issue, especially against the versatile five-men. After being torched by Nikola Jokic and Domantas Sabonis, Alperen Sengun joined the group with a 20-20 performance. That's certainly an area Fernandez must address, but it's always better to learn from a win than from a loss.

Next up for the Nets are the Washington Wizards, scheduled for tomorrow at 7:30 p.m. EST.

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