They hope to avoid No. 19 Friday in New Jersey against the Charlotte Bobcats, a team that already owns a victory over them. The Bobcats overcame a 14-point deficit to beat the Nets, 79-68, in Charlotte Nov. 2.

While interim Kiki Vandeweghe is set to coach his first game as the replacement for Lawrence Frank, who was fired at 0-16 -- assistant Tom Barrise handled the historic 17th and 18th defeats -- the Nets are questioning themselves.

"I feel like the streak is getting the best of us," said Chris Douglas-Roberts. "You have to have the heart to overcome something like this."

So Vandeweghe inherits a mess.

"Nobody likes to lose, period, and obviously we've made it clear and everybody knows this is a developmental year but nobody expected (this)," Vandeweghe. "Obviously, it's not acceptable. I think it's not acceptable to anybody, but especially the players."

MAVERICKS 117, NETS 101: Jason Kidd came back to New Jersey for the second time and found a mess that wound up losing a NBA record 18th straight game to start the season. The Nets put on a pitiful defensive display in the second quarter when Dallas shot 17-of-19 and scored 49 points, tying an opponent high for points in a quarter against the Nets. Tom Barrise coached the Nets for the second and final time, bridging the gap between Lawrence Frank and Kiki Vandeweghe.