Hawks 111 Nets 106
ATLANTA – Literally and figuratively, the Nets went down with a fight last night. Yes, this was a war and while none were killed there were many wounded and missing in action.
Suffice to say tonight’s rematch at the Meadowlands will be interesting. If the Nets can field a team, that is.
So when the dust cleared and the x-ray films developed, the Hawks emerged with a 111-106 victory that spoiled the hurting and battling Nets’ season-opener here at the Georgia Dome. To compound the loss, the Nets added Sam Cassell (badly sprained right ankle), Eric Murdock (pulled left groin) and Jayson Williams (broken nose) to the growing list of the injured. Cassell and Murdock are doubtful for tonight.
As the two combatant teams headed for their respective locker rooms, Williams, who suffered a broken nose from an errant Dikembe Mutombo elbow, took a few steps and gave a steely look toward the Hawks. Kendall Gill went him one better. He and Atlanta’s Steve Smith – who had drawn technicals during the contest – continued their game-long battle in a hallway outside the locker rooms. Witnesses said the two grabbed each other and went to the floor before they were separated while Alan Henderson, Williams and Mookie Blaylock also got involved.
“We just hugged each other good-bye,” said Gill. “I don’t really want to talk about it.”
Shortly after, Cassell came by in a wheelchair. He ended the game stretched out on the floor in front of the Net bench. Cassell gave all he had, scoring 36 points, a career high, in 42 minutes.
The heated emotions took over the spotlight of a game that was as appealing as a heel blister. This was a foul-shot marathon, the type of game that will probably cost the league far more spectators than any fan-friendly acts could ever land. Atlanta shot 60 free throws, the Nets 38. And they didn’t keep going to the line because of harmless handchecks.
“This was a war,” said Murdock, who debuted for the Nets with nine points in 15 minutes before pulling his groin :21 into the fourth quarter. As coach John Calipari surveyed the carnage in his locker room, he asked Murdock how the injury felt.
“Pretty bad,” Murdock mumbled.
Mumble was not the word for Williams, who scored 11 points and eight rebounds. He was furious about Mutombo, who had broken Cleveland Vitaly Potapenko’s schnozz in Atlanta’s victory Friday. Someone asked Williams if he was going after Mutombo.
“What, you want me just to hand my money to the NBA?” Williams said. “I told the referees before about him. He hit me in the mouth twice with elbows. He hit Keith [Van Horn]. How much is a man supposed to take? Russ Granik [the NBA deputy commissioner] better do something about this unless you want Jerry Springer out there … He’s broken two noses in two nights.”
Mutombo pleaded innocence.
“I didn’t see Jayson,” said Mutombo. “It was an accident. I turned around and he ran into my arm.”
Williams gave a two-syllable answer to the accidental defense. One syllable was “bull” the other wasn’t.
The Nets, who now have lost nine straight in Atlanta and four straight season-openers away from the Meadowlands, trailed by 18 in the third quarter (65-47) before Cassell and Keith Van Horn (29 points) ignited the comeback. They would get to within three points, 107-104, when Van Horn banged in a trifecta at :42.3. But Smith (29 points), LaPhonso Ellis (21) and Mookie Blaylock (14 opportunistic points) had done too much damage.
“Maybe now there’s a rivalry with Atlanta, like we have with New York, like we have with Miami, like we have with Boston,” said Calipari. “Beating us means something now. But it’s no consolation in a loss.”
The Nets’ comeback hopes were destroyed by two end-game plays. With Atlanta up, 104-99, Ellis clanged two free throws. But the Nets failed to control the rebound and it went to Grant Long. The Hawks reversed the ball and Smith nailed a three. After Van Horn scored five points in :40, the Hawks caught a break when Ellis went baseline and flipped an underhand shot. It hit the bottom of the backboard and went to Ellis who promptly scored the dagger at :28.5 on a reverse lay.
