The New York Knicks did its part beating Toronto to help itself get an NBA playoff spot, but the Nets kept them out by losing to the Hawks 93-88

We are at the point in the NBA season where teams have solidified their playoff position. Some teams are trying to improve their spot, while others are hanging on to faint hopes. Such is the story of the four teams that took to the floor Friday night. The Brooklyn Nets hosted the Atlanta Hawks at Barclays Center while the New York Knicks were on the road against the division leading Toronto Raptors.

The Nets know they will face the Chicago Bulls (who took them out in 7 games last year) when the playoffs start in two weeks. There will be no urgency to play their starters extended minutes to keep them as fresh as possible. For Toronto, it's the same story, the team is looking to win its division for the first time in franchise history. Atlanta holds a 1.5 game lead over New York for the 8th and final spot. It's more like 2.5 games as if both teams end up with identical records, the Hawks would get in due to having a better conference record. Comments were made recently by the Hawks general manager Danny Ferry that they would not mind missing the playoffs (they would face Miami or Indiana in the first round) so they could be a team in the lottery. It had folks from the NBA shaking their heads.

When the Nets introduced their new big 3 (Kevin Garnett, Paul Pierce and Jason Terry) last year the biggest question was how many minutes they would play during the course of the regular season as new first year Head Coach Jason Kidd knew that keeping them healthy and fresh would be the key to their postseason success or failure. Terry is no longer with the team, Pierce has been relatively healthy under those controlled minutes but Garnett's (his replacement Mason Plumlee has played very well in his place as evidenced by his game-winning block against LeBron James and Miami this past Tuesday) back has been a reason for concern. Before playing against Detroit last week on the road, Garnett missed the previous 15 games.

So it was no surprise when Brooklyn took the floor Friday night, the starting line-up had the look of an exhibition game. The Nets were without the services of Deron Williams, Shaun Livingston and Alan Anderson with little used Jorge Gutierrez starting in place of Williams. Garnett started his second straight game at center.

Plumlee continued his stellar play coming off the bench after Garnett's 3 minutes of play. Although he missed 2 of 3 free-throws, he connected on all 3 field goals scoring 7 points as the Nets took a 7 point (23-16) first quarter lead. The Hawks didn't play the second quarter like they were giving up on their playoff hopes. Led by Jeff Teague (all 14 points in the quarter) Atlanta outscored Brooklyn 39-24 to take an 8 point lead (55-47).

Atlanta extended the lead to 10 (66-56) after a Teague layup but the Nets closed out the 3rd quarter on a 17-8 run getting them within 1 (74-73) setting up the game that could define the Hawks post-season plans.

Neither team led by more than 5 (86-81 Hawks) after 2 Paul Millsap free throws. His 27th point of the game gave them a 1 point lead (89-88) with 1:46 left. Teague adds to the lead with 2 free throws and then Kyle Korver blocks Marcus Thorton's lay-up attempt. Joe Johnson misses a floater followed by another Teague basket. Game over.

The New York Knicks did their part beating Toronto on the road but had to be hanging their collective heads when they learned about the 93-88 Atlanta win. The loss broke Brooklyn's 15-game home winning streak. Maybe Ferry was playing reverse psychology with his players when he made his no playoff comment. Looks like it's working.

Brooklyn's Bit: Prior to the game, New York High School, College and Pro legend Kareem Abdul-Jabbar introduced his SkyHook Challenge to bring awareness to the Chronic Myeloid Leukemia he was diagnosed with in 2008. Skyhook Challenge is a timed trivia game fans participate in to see how many questions they can answer about Abdul Jabbar's basketball history. 

Brook Lopez and Jeremy Lin set the tone from the start to spoil Paul Millsap’s return to the Atlanta Hawks lineup

On January 10, 2017, the last time the Brooklyn Nets played the Atlanta Hawks at the Barclays Center, the Hawks ate their lunch beating the Nets 117-97. Tonight, it was a different story, the tables were reversed. In fact, the Brooklyn Nets looked like it was the team headed for the playoffs instead of the playoff-bound Atlanta Hawks, as the Nets grounded the Hawks, 91-82.

What plagued Atlanta this time around? Several things according to Atlanta Hawks’ head coach Mike Budenholzer, but especially the Nets’ three-point shooting and the versatility of Brooklyn Nets center Brook Lopez.

“He’s become such a great 3-point shooter,” Budenholzer said about trying to contain Lopez. “We tried to stay connected to him at the 3-point line more. And Rondae Hollis-Jefferson, I think he’s shooting 20 percent on the year at the 3-point line, he had two that helped them. Trevor Booker had one and that helped them.”

Lopez scored 18 points in the first quarter and 29 points overall (12-of-21 FG) with five rebounds, five assists and five blocks in 30:32 minutes of playing time. In so doing, Lopez became the second Net in franchise history to record 25+ points, five+ rebounds, five+ assists and five+ blocks in the same game. The last person to do that was Darnell Hillman almost 40 years ago vs. Chicago on November 11, 1977. Hillman now works for the Indiana Pacers.

With Lopez scoring 18 points in the first quarter, Budenholzer saw a need to change Atlanta’s strategy.

“I think we felt like we could keep Dwight Howard around the rim, around the paint,” Budenholzer said about his center. “Brooklyn is driving the ball a lot, and really our defense is not our problem – 91 points. So of course Brook Lopez had a really good game. Generally speaking, I don’t think our defense was the issue. I think we need to look closer at our offense and how we can score more, score better.”

But, seriously, it just wasn’t Atlanta’s night.

“We were just trying to be aggressive and we got hot,” said Nets point guard Jeremy Lin. “I feel like on the back end of a back-to-back that’s kind of just setting that tone, and establishing that just felt like we were in control of the game throughout, and even though we were the ones scoring points, that our whole starting five defensively came out and did a great job.”

“When you replay the game really quickly and you feel like there were some good chances we didn’t make – everybody, lots of different guys. And at times we were a little sloppy. It’d probably be great to get to the free-throw line a little bit more. I think it was just a combination of a lot of things and we just weren’t very good offensively,” Budenholzer added.

Yes, because sometimes playoff-bound teams sleep on teams that are not headed to the playoffs. They tend to think that it may be a cakewalk when they encounter a team like the Nets (17-59) that is in the last place in the NBA standings. However, in Brooklyn’s case, they are better than their win-loss record shows.

“They denied us, they gave us a little pressure,” Atlanta Hawks forward Paul Millsap stated. “Something we could have done a better job of was countering off of their aggressiveness.”

Atlanta’s center Dwight Howard was more pointed in his remarks, “We have to play team basketball; we can’t do it by ourselves. One person isn’t going to win us a game.”

Brooklyn Nets head coach Kenny Atkinson, known for his young player development abilities, has been drilling that mantra into his young team all season, that basketball is team ball. The Nets’ young players led by Lin and Lopez set Atkinson’s tone early in the game.

“That’s kind of why they’re your two best players,” Atkinson said about Lin and Lopez. “There’s just a mentality, I was saying that about Brook. Brook after a bad game or a not good shooting game like Detroit, he’s going to come back and bring it the next game. They set the tone; I thought Jeremy and Brook really set the tone. Look at Brook and we’re talking about his offense; five blocks, I thought he was monstrous defensively, helping off Dwight and just kind of controlling the paint basically. No doubt about it, they set the tone.”

“Coach always stresses, just be resilient,” said Nets shooting guard Sean Kilpatrick, who added 11 boards towards the Nets total of 51 rebounds in 25 minutes off the bench. “Make sure that you’re doing everything for the team and I think that’s something that everyone is doing on a normal basis. Down to recovery and down to the fact that everyone’s getting their work in early and making sure that we’re playing for one another.”

Brooklyn Nets players scoring in double digits in addition to Lopez were Lin with 15 points, six rebounds, and six assists; and Hollis-Jefferson with 11 points, five rebounds, and three steals.

In the loss, four of the five Hawks’ starters scored in double digits. Dennis Schroder had 16 points, five rebounds, and eight assists. Tim Hardaway Jr., who is probably grateful that the NY Knicks set him free, scored 14 points and six rebounds; Taurean Prince added 13 points and five rebounds and; Howard chipped in 11 points and 11 rebounds.

The Nets take on the Philadelphia 76ers at the Wells Fargo Center in Philadelphia on Tuesday.

NOTE:

Kilpatrick’s 11 boards marked his second-most rebounds in a game in his career (high: 14 in double OT on 11/29 against the Clippers).

Kilpatrick became just the third Nets guard to record 11 or more rebounds off the bench in a game since 1983-84, joining Markel Brown (4/10/16 at Indiana) and Stephen Jackson (12/10/00 vs. Dallas).

Brook Lopez leads all scorers with 20 points; With loss against the Hawks, the Nets fell to 8-29 overall and 7-12 at Barclays Center

“I think they’re playing excellent basketball, I think (they’re) an elite program in this league and this is one game where I’m looking at the opponent saying they’re pretty darn good.”

Those were the words of Brooklyn Nets head coach Kenny Atkinson at the post-game presser following a torching of the Brooklyn Nets by his former team, the Atlanta Hawks.

With the 117-97 loss to the Hawks, the Nets just lost its seventh straight game on Tuesday night at the Barclays Center. It must have been surreal for Atkinson, who last season, was an assistant coach with this up-and-coming Hawks team to now be the head coach of a team that is in the NBA basement.

“I wish we were a little more competitive, but again, I know I have an intimate knowledge of how they play and the players they have,” Atkinson said regarding playing his former team. “Again, we’re going to look at the tape and watch it to see if we can pick up some things. They set the bar high and we can look at it and say someday we’d like to strive to be a similar program, but we have a lot of work to do.”

Yes, the Nets do have a lot of work to do. The closest team Black and White came to the Hawks was in the first two minutes of the first quarter when twice the Nets were within one point. The Hawks held the lead throughout. The first stanza ended with a six-point spread, Hawks 35 Nets 29; and the Nets ended the first half with an 18-point deficit (61-43). In the Nets defense, they did try to turn things around, as they began the third quarter on a 15-7 run and pulled to 68-58 on Kilpatrick's bucket with 6:28 left. However, when the third quarter was over, the fruits from that run disappeared. The Nets ended the third down 16 points (86-70).

“They had more energy I think, especially the first half,” said a disappointed Nets center, Brook Lopez. “They just outworked us. The numbers clearly showed.”

“….we have to do a better job of taking care of the ball and have to rebound better,” Atkinson added. “I did think in the third quarter we came out with a little more aggressiveness. We were more aggressive on the ball, I thought that helped us. We came out with more energy, so that was a positive considering we’ve struggled in the third quarter, so I’ll take that. And overall in the second half, better. But we have a lot of things to work on.”

Perhaps, muscle memory will kick in soon.

In the loss, Lopez scored a game-high 20 points on 8-of-14 shooting with two blocks in 32 minutes against the Hawks. Bojan Bogdanovic added 16 points and six rebounds, Sean Kilpatrick had 14 points and five rebounds, Caris LeVert chipped in 11 points, and Rondae Hollis-Jefferson contributed 10 points and seven rebounds.

For the Hawks, Dennis Schroder scored a double-double with 19 points and 10 assists. Dwight Howard contributed 14 points and 16 rebounds, and Paul Millsap had 14 points and eight rebounds.

Up next for the Nets is the New Orleans Pelicans at the Barclays Center on Thursday at 7:30 p.m.

VIDEO: Not a splashy name; but Atkinson gets high marks from other coaches and players

In this video, What's The 411Sports hosts, Keisha Wilson and Mike McDonald, are talking about the Brooklyn Nets hire of Kenny Atkinson as the new head coach of the Brooklyn Nets. 

Do you think the Nets made the best decision?

Atkinson comes to Brooklyn Nets with rave reviews from Jeremy Lin and others

We knew it was coming, but we didn’t know the timeframe; but four days after the Brooklyn Nets season ended, the Nets announced its new head coach, Kenny Atkinson.

Atkinson will become the 21st head coach in the franchise’s NBA history and its sixth coach since 2012.

“We are thrilled to announce Kenny Atkinson as our new head coach and to welcome him and his family to Brooklyn,” Nets General Manager Sean Marks stated in a press release. “Kenny’s years of NBA coaching experience working under successful head coaches such as Mike Budenholzer and Mike D’Antoni have provided him with the foundation and experience we were looking for in a head coach. We believe that Kenny’s core principles, leadership, communication skills and exceptional background in player development make him an ideal fit for the culture we are building in Brooklyn.”

From the comments made by Nets owner Mikhail Prokhorov, he is continuing to signal patience with the team’s building process.

“I’d like to extend a personal welcome to Kenny and wish all of us success as we begin a new era at the Brooklyn Nets,” said Prokhorov. “Aside from his tremendous skills and experience, he has the mindset we need to build a winning team day by day, step by step. Together, we can do great things.”

And, glowing comments about Atkinson are coming from people outside the Nets organization including Charlotte Hornets point guard Jeremy Lin, who was coached by Atkinson when Lin played for the New York Knicks.

"I’ve kind of been saying it was just a matter of time for him because I know how good he is, I know how much he was there for me in New York," said Charlotte Hornets point guard Jeremy Lin. "When you’re around him, you kind of understand there’s something different about him: his energy, his passion, the juice he approaches his work with."

Lin added: "He doesn’t leave any stone unturned. He’s always the first one in, and I’m saying first one in by, like, hours."

Atkinson joins the Nets after spending the past four seasons as an assistant coach with the Atlanta Hawks under Head Coach Mike Budenholzer. The Hawks made playoff appearances in each of Atkinson’s four seasons, including the club’s first-ever trip to the Eastern Conference Finals last season. The 2014-15 Hawks registered a franchise-record 60 wins, including a franchise-best 19-game win streak, and captured their first division title in more than 20 years. Atkinson served on the 2015 Eastern Conference All-Star coaching staff, and he guided Team World in the BBVA Compass Rising Stars Challenge during All-Star weekend in New York. Prior to his tenure with the Hawks, Atkinson was an assistant coach for four seasons with the New York Knicks (2008-12), helping the team reach the postseason in 2011 and 2012. Atkinson also spent one season as the Director of Player Development for the Houston Rockets (2007-08).

“I am truly honored and humbled to be named the head coach of the Brooklyn Nets, and I would like to thank Nets’ ownership and management for this tremendous opportunity,” said Atkinson. “Together with Sean and his staff, we look forward to building a winning tradition here in Brooklyn. I also want to acknowledge and thank Mike Budenholzer and the entire Atlanta Hawks organization for their cooperation and support throughout this process. While I am eager to begin working with the Nets, I remain committed to my coaching responsibilities with the Hawks for the remainder of the postseason.”

A native of Huntington, New York, Atkinson has also held various coaching positions abroad, serving as Director of Player Development/Assistant Coach for Paris Basket Racing Club in France (2004-06), Director of Player Development/Assistant Coach for the national team of the Republic of Georgia in the summer of 2006 and as an assistant coach with the Ukraine national team at the European championships in 2011. Most recently, Atkinson was Head Coach of the Dominican Republic national team in last summer’s FIBA Americas Championship in Mexico City.

Prior to beginning his coaching career, Atkinson played professionally for 14 years (1990-2004), beginning his pro career in the CBA and USBL before competing for teams in France, Germany, Italy, Netherlands and Spain. A standout collegiate player at the University of Richmond, Atkinson earned All-CAA First Team honors as a junior and senior and helped lead the Spiders to a Sweet 16 appearance in the NCAA Tournament in 1988. He was also selected as the 1987 CAA Rookie of the Year.

Other names mentioned include: John Calipari, Danny Ferry and Bryan Colangelo

The Brooklyn Nets are reportedly interested in pursuing former Chicago Bulls head coach Tom Thibodeau to fill its vacancy at the head coach position.

Thibodeau, affectionately known as Tibs, coached the Bulls for five seasons winning 65% of his games and reaching the playoffs all five seasons. The Nets are not expected to make a move to fill the coaching vacancy until a new general manager is named. Possible candidates for the GM role are Danny Ferry formerly of the Atlanta Hawks and Bryan Colangelo formerly of the Phoenix Suns and the Toronto Raptors. Both Ferry and Colangelo were general managers at their former organizations.

Tony Brown will continue to act as the interim head coach.

Jarrett Jack’s defensive moves with nearly 30 seconds left in regulation panicked Atlanta’s Schroder

The Brooklyn Nets have been off to a rough start for the 2015-15 NBA Season. However, last night offered a glimpse of hope. The Nets toughed it out and survived a nail-biting, 90-88 win over the Atlanta Hawks, one of the better teams in the Eastern Conference. And they did it all on the defensive end of the court when it counted the most.

After Jarrett Jack drained a jumper, tying the game at 88-all with 33.3 seconds until the end of regulation, Jack nearly forced a turnover from Hawks, Dennis Schroder on the ensuing possession. With the Hawks shot-clock expiring, Jack's defense compelled Schroder to dribble into no man's land, using the baseline as an extra defender. A panicking Schroder almost lost the ball and had to resort to a rushed floater, which was rebounded by Paul Millsap, who was blocked by Brook Lopez, on his attempt to tie the game.

The Nets defense, when it was needed the most, got a stop, giving the team an opportunity to win the game, which was executed by Thaddeus Young, who sank two free-throws after being fouled on the fastbreak. And that particular sequence involving Schroder mirrored the entire game. Atlanta's, Spurs-like makeup of a team scored 10-less points than they are used to, averaging 101.6 points per game, the 11th best in the league, according to ESPN.com.

Mike Budenholzer's team committed 20 turnovers, the most they've committed this year in a single game.

"I give Brooklyn credit," said Hawks coach Mike Budenholzer. "They played well. They forced the turnovers. We didn't take care of the ball. So we're going to have to clean that up."

The win, which improved the Nets record to (2-9), exhibited the solution to their season, which has been disastrous to say the least and it all derives from the defensive side of the ball.

As a team, the Nets racked up 14 steals and seven blocks which are the type of production that will help the Nets remain in games against teams with superior talent. Although their defense was the star of the game, five players scored in double figures, led by Lopez's double-double, 24-10. Shane Larkin, in his first season with the Nets, had another great game, posting 14 points and Joe Johnson nearly reached a triple-double in 13 points, 9 assists, and seven rebounds.

VIDEO: NBA Playoffs Round 2, some surprises; Paul Pierce drops the mic

What’s The 411Sports anchors Glenn Gilliam and Gregory Alcala are talking about the 2nd Round of the NBA Playoffs

New York Rangers to Meet Tampa Bay Lightning; Phil Jackson May Be Unhappy With Isiah Thomas’ Presence at MSG; and lots more!

Watch the video of What's The 411Sports Episode 34:

Featuring What's The 411Sports hosts Glenn Gilliam and Gregory Alcala; and special guest panelist, Jason E. Schott, Reporter/Assignment Editor at BrooklynFans.com.

What’s Poppin’

Congratulations to the owner of American Pharoah; jockey, Victor Espinosa; and of course American Pharoah for winning the Preakness on the heels of winning the Kentucky Derby. Triple Crown madness is starting already!

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The New York Rangers needed extra time to beat the Washington Capitals, 2-1, in game 7 of the 2nd of the NHL playoffs. The Rangers have advanced to play the Tampa Bay Lightning for the Eastern Conference Championship. How good are the Rangers chances to advance to the Stanley Cup Championship round?

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According to The New York Daily News, New York Knicks president, Phil Jackson, is not happy with Isiah Thomas being named president of the New York Liberty and given a stake in the women’s professional basketball team.

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NFL Commissioner Roger Goodell has decided to hear New England Patriots QB-Tom Brady’s appeal regarding his four-game suspension associated with deflating footballs during the AFC Championship game against the Indianapolis Colts. However, the NFL Players Association says no way to Goodell’s reigning over the arbitration proceedings. What does this mean for Brady?

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NY Mets Manager Terry Collins speaks out. After suffering a four-game sweep by the Chicago Cubs, the Mets received a passionate speech by manager Terry Collins revolving around the issues the ball-club’s struggles as of late.

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Jason, as a reporter for www.Brooklynfans.com, you know that soccer is drawing huge crowds in New York, but like hockey, it is not a media darling. Give us a synopsis of the soccer picture in New York and what will it take for soccer to be a breakout star?

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The WNBA suspended Phoenix Mercury star Brittney Griner and her wife, Tulsa Shock Forward Glory Johnson for seven games for their roles in a domestic dispute last month. WNBA president Laurel J. Richie said in a statement on the league’s website:

"WITH CONSIDERATION OF ALL THE FACTS AND CIRCUMSTANCES OF THIS MATTER, WE ARE SUSPENDING BRITTNEY GRINER AND GLORY JOHNSON EACH WITHOUT PAY FOR A PERIOD OF SEVEN REGULAR-SEASON GAMES. BRITTNEY AND GLORY'S CONDUCT IS DETRIMENTAL TO THE BEST INTERESTS OF THE WNBA AND VIOLATES APPLICABLE LAW."

Under The Radar

The Cleveland Cavaliers won game 6 against the Chicago Bulls to advance to the eastern conference finals round and J.R. Smith took to Instagram to take a jab at the New York Knicks. Smith posted side-by-side pics of him and Iman Shumpert in both Knicks and Cavs gear stating:

“ONE MAN’S TRASH…..IS ANOTHER MANS TREASURE”

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The NCAA Men’s Basketball Rules Committee announced that it would recommend shortening the shot clock from 35 seconds to 30, increase the restricted area arc in front of the basket from three feet to four feet, and three other changes aimed at reducing timeouts.

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File this one under sports meets pop culture. While the Washington Wizards John Wall was sitting on the sideline during Game 4 against the Atlanta Hawks, J.R. Smith, who won the NBA fashion show during the NBA All-Star Week, took to twitter to comment on John Wall’s suit.

#JWall your suit tho! #Turrrbile #WorstThenCrCharlesDraftSuit

John Wall retorted according to Adam Mcginnis from truth about it:

"I LOVED MY OUTFIT IN GAME 4," WALL TOLD MCGINNIS. "I DON’T CARE WHAT DECISION NOBODY MAKES, I AM GOING TO BE ME. I AM GOING TO WEAR WHAT JOHN WALL IS COMFORTABLE WITH. THE ONLY SOMEBODY WHO SAID SOMETHING BECAUSE HE WON A FASHION CONTEST, ONCE."

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Springfield Gardens High School, the high school that the late New York Knicks player Anthony Mason attended, named its gymnasium “MASE COURT”, in his honor.

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And in memoriam, just two days after the death of pro golfer Calvin Peete, winner of the 1985 Players Champion, we have lost yet another pioneering African-American golfer.

African-American Golfer's Digest reports that Pete Brown, first black golfer to win on PGA tour, died on May 1st at 80-years old.

Brown was among those who blazed the trail for Calvin Peete and Tiger Woods.

In the Dog House

Greg Alcala stated: I picked the Cleveland Cavaliers to beat the Chicago Bulls in round 2 of the NBA playoffs, but I am putting the Chicago Bulls in the Dog House for not showing up in Game 6.

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Glenn Gilliam stated that he is putting the NFL in the Dog House. According To NJ.com, The National Guard has made deals with 14 NFL teams to honor the veterans of this country from 2011 To 2014.

According to federal contracts from the Department of Defense, the National Guard spent over $5 million to teams during that time span.

U.S. Senator Jeff Flake ripped the entire practice carried out by the National Guard.

“THOSE OF US GO TO SPORTING EVENTS AND SEE THEM HONORING THE HEROES,” SAID FLAKE. “YOU GET A GOOD FEELING IN YOUR HEART. THEN TO FIND OUT THEY’RE DOING IT BECAUSE THEY’RE COMPENSATED FOR IT, IT LEAVES YOU UNDERWHELMED. IT SEEMS A LITTLE UNSEEMLY…IT JUST LEAVES A BAD TASTE IN YOUR MOUTH.”

Pipeline:

Come cheer on KEISHER “FIRE” MCLEOD-WELLS AKA KEISHER THE BOXING DIVA, as she goes for her second professional title championship belt on Saturday, May 30, 2015 at the Resorts World Casino in Queens brought to you by New Legend Promotions.

Tickets can be purchased through www.KeisherMcleodWells.com or call Gleason's Gym AT (718) 797-2872 or (646) 537-5059

The French Open, held in Paris, France, IS May 24-June 7, so if you’re not booked already, it may be too late!

The 2015 NBA Draft is on June 25th.

Disastrous 3rd Quarter Dooms Nets, Playoff Upset Hopes Dashed with 4-2 Series Loss

Unfortunately for the Brooklyn Nets, their Game 7 has come a game early.

Down 3-2 in their 1st-round series against the Atlanta Hawks in this year’s NBA Playoffs, the Nets returned home, hosting the Atlanta Hawks for their Game 6, a possible closeout-game for the away team.

Earlier in this series when the Nets backs were against the wall, they delivered. Down 2-0, the Nets tied this series up winning the next two games at home, highlighted by a 35-point outburst from Deron Williams in Game 4.

But the Nets failed to win a pivotal Game 5, on the road and here we are.

The Nets season is on the line and to force a Game 7, the Nets have no choice but to lay it all on the line like a Game 7 and Friday night, they failed to do so.

The Hawks had their way with the Nets all game long en route to a 111-87 win, advancing to the second round to challenge the Washington Wizards, eliminating the Nets from the post-season.

In tonight's contest, Paul Millsap led all scorers for the Hawks with 25 points (6 assists and 9 rebs) accompanied by DeMarre Carroll and Kyle Korver, who found success consistently, both scoring 20 each.

As far as the Nets are concerned, as a team, this game got away from them in the 3rd quarter alone, which sealed their fate early in the second half.

The Hawks scored the first seven points of the 3rd, extending what was a 51-45, six-point half-time lead to a 14-point, 59-45 lead, forcing a Nets timeout, through the first two minutes of the quarter.

Deron Williams would answer with a trey, cutting the deficit to 11, 59-48, with less than nine minutes remaining in the quarter and then the Hawks retaliated with yet another run.

Brooklyn Nets point guard Deron Williams

"When it started happening (Hawks run), I called a time out," Hollins said post-game.

"Then I called another time-out and you could just see they had the wave of momentum that they weren't going to let up."

Kyle Korver and DeMarre Carroll would hit back-to-back three's and Al Horford would sink two consecutive buckets generating a 10-0 run, which ballooned their double-digit lead to 21, 69-48, forcing the second Nets timeout of the quarter in less than three minutes.

And that 21-point lead continued to 26, as the Hawks shot 57.4% from the field in the 3rd alone, shutting out the Nets who struggled to keep up with the no.1 seeded Hawks, shooting 37.5%.

In addition to their shooting woes, the Nets had a hard time taking care of the ball, committing five turnovers which aided the Hawks in scoring quick, easy baskets, contributing to their runs in the 3rd, routing the Nets in the process.

"The thing that's been killing us turnovers," said Joe Johnson. "Each and every game, no matter what game, and especially again tonight, at the start of the third quarter we started off with three or four turnovers and they go on a 12-0 run. We never bounced back from that."

Brooklyn Nets shooting guard, Joe Johnson

The runs, early in the 3rd quarter by the Hawks sucked the life out of the Nets, and created a deficit that the home team was unable to cope with and the pace of the game, without a doubt favored the visiting Hawks.

"We gotta stay being true to who we are and that's playing house basketball," said Carroll post-game.

"That's getting up and down the court, and I think Jeff Teague did a good job of that even though he didn't score tonight."

And they didn't need him to.

Teague distributed the ball like a true floor general, collecting 13 assists, helping three Hawks to score 20+ points, almost four in Horford who finished with 18 points.

The Nets on the other hand, didn't have a 35-point D-Will performance to lean on and as a team, lacked one 20-point scorer which defined their offense tonight.

It wasn't there.

Brook Lopez led the Nets with 19 points, followed by 13 from Williams and 12 by Johnson.

The Nets entered the final quarter down by 26-points, and with an uphill battle ahead of them, waved the white flag within time.

At the 4:40 minute mark in the 4th, Hollins called a timeout subbing in Jerome Jordan, Darius Morris and Earl Clark for Williams, Johnson and Mason Plumlee and you didn't need a basketball analyst to know that this Nets season has come to a close.

Those subs were drowned out by the boos that filled the Barclays Center and to begin the quarter the PA announcer didn't even bother addressing the crowd, a home-game ritual where he asks Brooklyn to stand-up.

It wouldn't have helped.

The Hawks were focused and the Nets couldn't match the level of play necessary to force a Game 7.

"They were the better team and they showed it in the last game here," Hollins said during his post-game press conference which is the painful truth.

Only three teams in NBA history have successfully upset a no.1 team in the NBA playoffs (94 Nuggets, 99 Knicks, 07 Warriors) and like father time, history is undefeated also.

In closing, Hollins reflected on the season expressing his gratitude to the players he's coached and also shared his thoughts on the immediate future.

"We'll have to collect our thoughts and get ready for the summer," Hollins said.

"It is an important summer for our young players. We're going to attend two summer leagues and try to get some of our internal players better, then I'll get with Billy [King] and our front office and we'll talk about other needs."

And those comments capped off a frustrating season leading into what could be an interesting off-season for the home-team, but most importantly there's always next year.

Disastrous 3rd Quarter Dooms Nets, Playoff Upset Hopes Dashed with 4-2 Series Loss