Lue lifts Hawks over Nets

Joe Johnson had 37 points, including 14 in the third quarter, eight assists and five rebounds while Josh Smith added 14 points and 10 rebounds for the Hawks, who have won three of their last four games. Marvin Williams donated 12 points and Zaza Pachulia finished with 10 points and six rebounds in the win.

Vince Carter poured in 27 points, dished out eight assists and grabbed seven rebounds and Marcus Williams chipped in 18 points for the Nets, who have lost three straight. Mikki Moore and Jason Kidd each scored 13 while Kidd handed out 11 assists and Moore pulled down seven boards in the loss.

"We put ourselves in a very precarious position. We fought back, but this game is 48 minutes and we lose again on another buzzer beater," said Nets head coach Lawrence Frank. "It’s just disheartening when we’re not giving maximum effort because that’s something we had been doing and that’s going to be the only way for us to win."

After a pair of Williams’ free throws put New Jersey up 92-89, Smith took over with the next six Atlanta points.

Lue’s jumper pushed the score to 97-94 with 14.4 ticks remaining in the extra session, but Carter was fouled driving to the basket. He sank both from the charity stripe, bringing the Nets within 97-96 with 11.4 seconds to play.

Lue then hit two at the line with 9.4 seconds left to make it a three-point ballgame, but Carter came through in the clutch and hit a long distance shot with 2.9 on the clock to tie the game at 99.

Lue then faked out Antoine Wright and found himself open for the game- clinching jumper.

Tied at 75, the Hawks netted seven straight points, ending with Smith’s trey, but the Nets came right back with seven points of their own, highlighted by Carter’s layup, to tie the score 82-82.

Marvin Williams then drained a jumper followed by a bucket from Johnson for an 86-82 margin with 43 seconds on the clock, but Carter drove to the hoop for a layup and then Kidd made a long pass to Marcus Williams for the game-tying layup with 10.7 seconds left.

Smith had a chance to end the game in regulation but his trey was no good.

Pachulia’s layup with the clock running down cut the deficit to 24-22 after the first quarter and the Hawks took a 43-42 lead into the locker room after Marvin Williams’ layup with 4.4 ticks on the clock.

Kidd’s layup gave the Nets a 52-47 lead, but the Hawks closed the third with a 20-8 streak, including 12 points from Johnson, for a 67-60 score heading into the final frame.

Game Notes

The Nets have given up at least 100 points to their last seven opponents (2-5)...The last home loss for the Nets against the Hawks was a 104-102 overtime loss on February 27, 2000...New Jersey shot 49 percent from the floor, while the Hawks connected on 46 percent of their shots from the field...New Jersey shot an abysmal 59 percent from the line, compared to 90 percent for the Hawks...Atlanta won the battle of the boards, 39-36.