--When Utah's Carlos Boozer scored 41 points against the Nets Saturday on the heels of LeBron James scoring 42 on Wednesday, it was the first time in nearly 30 years the Nets were torched for back-to-back 40-point efforts in games they won -- the Nets ended a 6-game losing streak by holding off Cleveland and then rallied to beat Utah.
--Back on March 17, 1978, the Nets defeated Denver, 111-109, despite 40 points by David Thompson. The following night, the Nets withstood 57 points by Calvin Murphy in a 106-104 win over Houston. --The Nets have been running again. At least for a few games. They hung up 53 fast-break points in wins over Cleveland Utah after their disastrous 0-5 road trip and then registered just 11 against the Bulls Tuesday. A key to the running resurgence has been Devin Harris who had 21 assists in the two wins including a career-high 12 against Utah, then sprained his ankle after 17 minutes against Chicago.
"That's the way we've got to play, I think," Harris said of the up-tempo style. "When we play a slow-down game, it really doesn't fit us too well. We've got athletic guys, (so) when we run the break we're successful and we've got to continue to do that."
QUOTE TO NOTE: "It definitely would sound strange that it would come down to battling for the eighth spot and having a decisive game." -- F Bostjan Nachbar, discussing the importance of Wednesday game in New Jersey against Atlanta, a game that few forecast as having playoff importance at the start of the season.
