Long Island Nets defeat Indiana Mad Ants, 114-109, as Drew Timme notches double-double
Photo by Ron Hoskins/NBAE via Getty Images
Drew Timme, Tosan Evbuomwan and Tyson Etienne all played well in the win and Etienne wound up with a two-way. Despite continuing to take their foot off the gas and giving up a late 14-point lead, Long Island walked away with a win, 114-109, over the Indiana Mad Ants in Indianapolis.
Long Island came into this game undermanned. With the likes of Oshae Brissett out with right knee soreness, and recent two-way signee, Kendall Brown out with a right adductor strain. However, the players who did take the court, Drew Timme and Tyson Etienne continued their late season heroics.
Where else do we start? Timme has been arguably playing the best basketball of his entire pro career. He has been a double-double machine, even picking up a triple-double here and there. In Tuesday’s game, Timme showed first hand what he can do down low.
Timme finished the game with the team leads in points and rebounds: 27 points and 15 rebounds and tied for the team lead in offensive rebounds with three and defensive rebounds with 12. He connected on 11 of his 18 shots, including making two out of his four from beyond the arc.
Tyson Etienne also continued his hot play as he conditioned to audition for the NBA teams an audition that paid off post-game. Etienne finished the game with 22 points, second behind only Timme. He connected on seven of his 14 shot attempts, including hitting four out of his nine shots from deep.
Where Etienne excelled the most was at the foul line. At the end of the game, when Long Island had a one-point lead. Etienne was intentionally fouled twice. He connected on all four of his free throws to give Long Island some much-needed insurance to put the game away. Etienne also picked up two rebounds, three assists, and one steal.
Following his impressive game today, Etienne, who’s averaged 16.9 points, shooting over 40% from the 3-point line, signed a two-way deal, available after Brooklyn waived the injured Brown, the most recent of their two-way signees.
Meanwhile another two-way, Tosan Evbuomwan, came very close to picking up a double-double in his own right. Evbuomwan finished the game with 19 points, nine rebounds, and four assists. He also was an on-the-ball menace, as he picked up a pair of steals, and blocked a shot.
Trevon Scott got the start, as Long Island remained without Oshae Brissett, still troubled by s hamstring injury. The 6’8” 28-year-old finished the game with 18 points, five rebounds, two assists, 1 steal, and one block.
For Indiana, Quenton Jackson and RayJ Dennis each had big games, picking up 30 and 27 points, respectively.
The first quarter was tight to the very end. There were seven ties and nine lead changes alone in the first. However, Long Island was able to take a one-point lead into the second. The second quarter saw more of the same as the first. By the half, there were 10 ties and 25 total lead changes in the entire first half. Despite it all, Long Island took a 64-62 lead into the half.
The third quarter saw Long Island begin to pull away from Indiana with the great play from Timme. Long Island outscored Indiana, 33-21, to put the game on ice. Despite taking a 14-point lead into the fourth, Indiana battled back and took the lead with under two minutes to go. Ultimately, thanks to four clutch foul shots from Etienne, Long Island walked away with the five-point win.
Former Nets Jahlil Okafor finished with 21 points and nine rebounds as he tries at age 29 to return to the NBA. He’s averaging 17.8 points, 9.2 rebounds and 3.0 assists for Indiana.
The Nets now have three two-ways with the Etienne call-up: him, Evbuomwan and Reece Beekman. It’s uncertain when Etienne might play in Brooklyn. If Long Island is going to make a late run for the post-season, Etienne will be critical but with 10 games to go, the Nets remain in 10th place, two and a half games out of the playoffs.
Next Up
The Long Island Nets (12-13) look to remain in the win column as they make a playoff push when they next take the court against the Westchester Knicks a week from today on Tuesday, March 11th. The game tips off at 11:00 a.m. EST and can be watched on ESPN+ and MSG.
Boxscore: Long Island Nets 114, Indiana Mad Ants 109 - G League
Dennis and Jackson Combine for 57 Points in Tuesday Afternoon Defeat - G League
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