Nets clip Hawks

Vince Carter posted 24 points and eight assists for New Jersey, which has won four of its last five games and is seventh in the Eastern Conference playoff race. Mikki Moore had 14 points and nine boards, Josh Boone posted 13 points and eight boards, and Jason Kidd added nine points and 10 assists in the win.

"Every team that we play from here on out is either in the playoffs or fighting to get in the playoffs," New Jersey coach Lawrence Frank said. "All we can be concerned about is our own play."

Salim Stoudamire scored 19 points for the Hawks, who have dropped seven in a row and nine of their last 10 games. Zaza Pachulia scored 18 points and Josh Smith added 15 points and eight boards. Shelden Williams contributed nine points and 14 boards for Atlanta, which has also lost 10 straight on the road and is 12-26 away from Philips Arena this season.

"We’re just not playing good ball right now," Atlanta guard Anthony Johnson said. "We’re just not getting it done. Different nights we find different ways to let ballgames get away from us."

New Jersey opened the game with an 11-6 run, ended by a pair of Richard Jefferson free throws with 8:27 remaining, and neither team gained any ground throughout the stanza for a 27-22 Nets lead heading into the second.

The Hawks caught up midway through the second on a 13-0 burst, capped by a pair of Pachulia free throws with 4:52 remaining for a 37-32 advantage.

New Jersey answered right back with a 20-2 explosion down the stretch and Nachbar’s trey with 31 seconds left put the Nets ahead 52-39 heading into the locker room.

The Nets added to their lead on an 11-4 run, ended by a pair of Moore buckets for a 64-46 margin approaching the midway point of the third. They led 78-60 heading into the fourth.

Atlanta started to rally midway through the fourth on an 11-0 run, finished by a Stoudamire dunk with 4:30 remaining to cut its deficit to 90-79, but the Nets put the Hawks away on an 8-1 spurt down the stretch, snapped by an Royal Ivey jumper in the final seconds.

Game Notes

Wednesday’s game between Atlanta and New Jersey was the third and final meeting of the regular season. The Nets won the season series, 2-1, and have won four of five and eight of the last 10 meetings...Atlanta snapped a nine- game series road losing streak with a 101-99 overtime win on February 4 this season. It has lost 16 of its last 19 at New Jersey.