MILWAUKEE — How big was the Nets’ 133-128 win in Milwaukee?
It didn’t clinch a playoff berth, but it left one tantalizingly within reach — and when coach Kenny Atkinson was asked how he was going to prepare for the next night’s game, the always-worried, confessed curmudgeon admitted he was going to celebrate this one first.
“I’ll prepare by having a glass of wine,” said Atkinson, who is partial to a good red. “Sometimes, you have to celebrate. You celebrate and then get my workout in, and we’ll be ready to prepare [for the Pacers].’’
Who could blame Atkinson and his Nets for a glass or three to toast Saturday’s win? Sure, Giannis Antetokounmpo sat to rest his sore calf for the NBA-leading Bucks. But with the Nets fighting tooth-and-nail for their first playoff bid since 2015, they’re not worried about style points, just real ones. And they scored just enough.
“So proud of how they closed it out,” Atkinson said.
The Nets coughed up 55.7 percent shooting despite not having to deal with the Greek Freak. But they hit 19 of 45 from 3-point range themselves, none of those shots bigger than Joe Harris’ dagger with 1:24 left to break a 128-all tie and give the Nets the lead for good.
Eric Bledsoe had game-highs of 33 points and 11 assists, and Khris Middleton added 24. But the Nets had balance with eight in double figures, led by D’Angelo Russell (25 points, 10 assists) and Caris LeVert (24 points, six assists).
Kenny AtkinsonNBAE/Getty Images“They didn’t have Giannis. That was the difference,” Russell said.
“It’s tough, even without Giannis. I know that helped us, but with Middleton playing and Bledsoe playing like an All-Star, we just got key stops at the very end,” said Jared Dudley (16 points), who added the win took some pressure off.
“There should be pressure, going to the playoffs, there’s pressure to win,” Dudley said. “If we would’ve lost, people would say it was a bad loss. Well, this is still a good team, at home, they had a couple days rest. … For us, it’s win or go home literally. … We want to control our fate. We want to win in Indiana and celebrate.”
The Nets (40-40) leapfrogged the Magic into sixth place in the Eastern Conference, thanks to owning the tiebreaker. They’re a half-game ahead of the Pistons and 1 ½ clear of the Heat.
The Nets play Sunday at Indiana, while the Heat play at Toronto, the Magic at Boston and the Hornets and Pistons face off in Detroit. And the Nets gave themselves a cushion with some clutch play.
After leading 108-93 with 37.1 seconds left in the third, the Nets actually fell behind 126-125 on a Middleton dunk with 3:07 to play. But they didn’t allow another basket.
Bledsoe’s free throws gave the Bucks a 128-126 edge with 2:30 to play, but the Nets held them scoreless the rest of the way.
Russell tied the game from the line, before Middleton traveled with 2:06 left. Even after Dudley missed a jumper, the Nets grabbed three straight offensive boards. The third was a Dudley tip-out to LeVert, who swung it to Harris.
Harris buried a 3, and buried the Bucks with it.
“I saw [Brook] Lopez daydreaming, and I just wanted to run in there and try to get an extra possession. If we get the rebound and get an extra 14 seconds, we can try to put it away,” Dudley said.
“It was a scramble, got tipped out and I just happened to be open on the left wing, and room-and-rhythm look,” Harris said. “I just let it go and was fortunate to get the make.”
Sterling Brown missed two free throws, and after a Russell layup, Bledsoe missed one of his own. Even after Treveon Graham’s missed 3, a Dudley offensive rebound let the Nets bleed more clock and sealed the win.
