Blazers' Hot Shooting Hands Nets Third-Straight Loss

Facing the threat of a three-game losing streak, the Brooklyn Nets returned home from a two-game road trip for a matchup with the Portland Trail Blazers at the Barclays Center. Unable to replicate its success from a Jan. 14 win over Portland, Brooklyn fell 121-102.

Nic Claxton led the Nets with 16 points, five rebounds and three assists in the home falter.

Despite Cam Thomas' highly-anticipated return to Brooklyn's lineup, the offensive weapon wasn't the primary storyline of the contest's early stages — Portland's scoring attack was. The Trail Blazers' duo of Shaedon Sharpe and Toumani Camara combined for 24 points in the opening frame, willing their team to a scorching 10-of-10 start from the field.

The visitors went cold following the perfect beginning, allowing the Nets' balanced attack to get to work. Thomas added just two points in five minutes of action, but seven members of Jordi Fernandez's rotation made at least one field goal as Brooklyn trailed by eight early.

Despite cooling off toward the end of the first quarter, the Trail Blazers rediscovered their scoring efficiency almost immediately in the second. Sharpe remained lethal, concluding the first half with 17 points on 7-of-8 shooting, emphasizing the Nets' defensive woes. The same goes for Camara and Anfernee Simons, who each comfortably and methodically surpassed double digits in the scoring column.

Thomas began to shake off the injury rust toward the end of his 10-minute first half, although his eight-point effort wouldn't affect the scoreboard much. He and Claxton posted eight apiece while Keon Johnson added seven of his own, but 13 turnovers prevented Brooklyn's offense from finding its rhythm.

As the first half buzzer sounded, sloppy offense and porous defense resulted in a 17-point hole for Fernandez and company, creating the need for a miraculous comeback. Portland boasts an 11-5 record against the Eastern Conference this season, hurting the Nets' odds of chipping away at their deficit.

However, they did just that. Out of the break, while the defensive performance refused to improve, the offensive output appeared far better. Claxton began working the interior, adding six points in the third quarter, as Cam Johnson appeared to settle. Unfortunately, the Nets still surrendered 27 points, but the tide turned late in the stanza. Brooklyn closed the third on an 8-0 run, three courtesy of Jalen Wilson, trimming the gap to just nine with 12 minutes to play.

Without being affected by the momentum shift, Portland continued doing what it had all evening: getting great open looks, and knocking them down. Dalano Banton, a former second-round pick of the Toronto Raptors in his second stint with the Trail Blazers, all but shut the door on Brooklyn's comeback bid down the stretch.

He scored 11 points through the first five minutes of the fourth quarter, including a three-pointer which pushed the Nets' deficit back up to 21. Banton's takeover capped off a 9-0 run in response to Brooklyn's late third-quarter push and ultimately put the tilt out of reach.

Now losers in three straight, and four of their last five, the Nets get a quick turnaround against the red-hot Pistons in Detroit tomorrow at 7:30 p.m. EST. Cade Cunningham has led the Pistons to eight-straight victories, tied for the longest active streak in the NBA, amid the most successful season Detroit has witnessed in ages. Brooklyn looks to pull off the upset while ending its recent skid.

To acess the final box score from the Nets' loss to the Portland Trail Blazers, click here.

Want to join the discussion? Like Nets on SI on Facebook and follow us on Twitter to stay up to date on all the latest Nets news. You can also meet the team behind the coverage.