Jason Kidd

Kidd registers 81st triple double as Nets down Warriors 105 97

For one of the few times this season, the New Jersey Nets won with defence instead of their stars.

Sure, Jason Kidd recorded his 81st career triple-double and Nenad Krstic had 26 points and a season-high 14 rebounds, but the key for the Nets on Monday night was a fourth-quarter defence that limited the Golden State Warriors to 13 points in a 105-97 win.

``In the fourth quarter we were significantly better defensively,'' Nets coach Lawrence Frank said. ``We made them play in the halfcourt and we put together consecutive stops.''

In the opening seven minutes of the final quarter, New Jersey held the Warriors to 2-of-10 shooting from the field and forced four turnovers in turning an eight-point deficit into a seven-point lead.

``I think we paid attention. There weren't any mental breakdowns,'' Kidd said of the defensive effort. ``Every one helped. There was talk. We need that in the fourth quarter.''

Kidd finished with 10 points, 12 assists and 11 rebounds and the Nets broke a two-game losing streak, winning for the fifth time in 16 games. The triple-double was the sixth of the season for the Nets point guard.

Richard Jefferson added 15 points and Vince Carter had 11 points for New Jersey, which took control of the game with a 19-4 spurt to open the fourth. Little used Bostjan Nachbar had nine of his 13 points in the final quarter.

Baron Davis led the Warriors with 25 points, nine assists and eight rebounds, but only had three in the final quarter. Monta Ellis added 19 points and Mike Dunleavy had 18 points off the bench.

``That's where we lost the game, the fourth quarter,'' Davis said after the Warriors lost their eighth straight on the road. ``We hit an offensive wall and stopped moving the ball and running.

``It was due in large part because we didn't come up with any loose balls, any deflections or any of those long rebounds. They beat us to the punch in the fourth quarter. It was like they wanted it a little more.''

The Warriors took an 84-78 lead into the final quarter and expanded the margin to eight when Dunleavy got a rebound and drove the length of the court for a layup.

Backup point guard Marcus Williams stripped Davis of the ball on the next possession and scored on a layup, igniting the Nets' spurt. Mikki Moore got New Jersey within 86-84 with a layup and two free throws.

Dunleavy pushed the Warriors' margin to 88-84 with a jumper, but Golden State was outscored 13-0 over the next four-plus minutes.

Two more free throws by Moore and a layup by Nachbar eventually tied the game. Nachbar's free throw a minute later put New Jersey ahead 89-88. Jefferson then hit a jumper and two free throws after stealing the ball from Davis for a 93-88 lead with six minutes to play.

A layup by Nachbar and two free throws by Carter pushed the margin to 97-88 and Golden State couldn't close the gap.

``They are a good halfcourt defensive team,'' Davis said. ``That's what coach told us before the game.

``We just played right into their hands in the fourth.''

NOTES: New Jersey native Troy Murphy missed his fifth straight game with a sore left foot . . . Kidd needed nine points to reach 13,000 career points . . . The Nets made a late lineup change, starting Antoine Wright at forward for Jason Collins. Wright had four points in 22 minutes. Collins did not score in seven . . . Nets rookie F Josh Boone was inactive because of a migraine headache.

Nets guard Kidd records 80th career triple double in 108 95 win over Bucks

Vince Carter and Jason Kidd delivered as usual. The surprise for the New Jersey Nets was the play of their bench and a rare off night by Milwaukee's Michael Redd.

Carter scored 36 points, Kidd registered his 80th career triple-double with 10 points, 10 rebounds and 10 assists and three reserves made big fourth-quarter contributions to lead the Nets to a 108-95 victory over the Bucks on Wednesday night.

``Jason and Vince obviously played at a very high level but they couldn't have won the game alone,'' Nets coach Lawrence Frank said. ``The contribution of the bench speaks for itself.''

Marcus Williams had six points and an assist in the fourth quarter. Fellow rookie Hassan Adams added six points, two steals and three assists with the game on the line and backup centre Mikki Moore had five points and four rebounds as the Nets won consecutive games for only the third time this season.

``Everybody, I think, contributed,'' said Carter, who was 12-of-23 from the field with six three-pointers. ``Once you get your swagger and mojo going, it works wonders for you. Those guys came in and gave us energy.''

Charlie Villanueva scored 23 points and Mo Williams added 17 for the Bucks, who couldn't overcome the combination of a slow start and Redd's worst game since April 15, 2005. The NBA's No. 3 scorer (28.9) had a season-low nine points, snapping a streak of 101 games in which had scored in double figures.

``You just have to realize that you are going to have a lot more great games than you have bad games,'' said Redd, who was 3-of-13 from the field. ``Tonight New Jersey was determined to shut me down. They did a good job. They had an extra body in front of me all night.''

Redd's previous low this season was 15 against Toronto on Nov. 3. His last sub double-digit game was eight against Detroit at the end of the 2004-05 season.

Andrew Bogut, who didn't score in an earlier meeting between the teams this season, added 15 points and 11 rebounds for Milwaukee.

Milwaukee, which trailed by 12 points in the opening minutes, pulled within 79-77 on a three-pointer by Steve Blake in the opening minutes of the fourth quarter.

After a turnover by Marcus Williams, the Bucks lost a chance to tie the game when Ruben Patterson (16 points) turned the ball over.

The Nets then took over.

Williams hit a three-pointer, Moore slammed home a missed floater by Adams, and Adams then made a reverse layup off a nice pass from Carter for an 86-77 lead. After Redd missed another shot, Carter hit two free throws for an 88-77 lead and Milwaukee never threatened again.

``I though Hassan came in and changed the game around, defensively and offensively,'' Kidd said. ``We could feed off the energy he came with. Vince was Vince and we can talk all night about what he did but I thought Hassan was the turning point.''

Carter, who hit his first five three-pointers on Monday, hit his first four in the opening quarter to help New Jersey take a 25-13 lead.

``Give him credit, he buried all four of them,'' said Redd, who had two points and three fouls in the first half. ``I knew once he hit those four, as a fellow scorer, once you get that rhythm, it's going to be a long night for the opposing team.''

The Nets hit 10 of their first 12 shots from the field, but made only six of 26 the rest of the half in taking a 50-47 lead.

Notes: Nets F Richard Jefferson missed the second half with a sore ankle. He had seven points. ... Referee Jess Kersey was asked by a fan when he would be 65. ``I'll be 66 on Jan. 12,'' he responded. ... Milwaukee is 1-5 vs. the dreadful Atlantic Division. ... New Jersey has won three straight and eight of 11 against Milwaukee. ... The triple-double was the second straight and third in four games for Kidd.

Kidd pours in career high 25 points as Nets earn 100 87 win over Bucks

With Richard Jefferson out with a sprained ankle and Vince Carter battling a flu-bug, Jason Kidd put on a one-man show for the New Jersey Nets.

Kidd scored a season-high 25 points and added 11 assists and eight rebounds to lead the Nets to a 100-87 victory over the Milwaukee Bucks on Wednesday night.

``I didn't know if Vince was going or not so my mindset was to come out and grab control of the game,'' Kidd said. ``My plan didn't change when I found out Vince was going. I wanted to help him out on the offensive end because we've relied on him so much to carry us. I made some early shots and my teammates found me.''

Kidd hit his first four shots and six-of his first seven to become the first Nets player other than Carter to lead the team in scoring this season. The 33-year old scored 11 straight points in a 21-3 first-quarter spurt that gave New Jersey the lead for good.

``Jason understands the game. He understands with R.J. out, he has to step it up,'' Carter said. ``From the jump ball it was his show. He was man possessed tonight. It was great to see.''

Carter, who battled flu-like symptoms all day and was a game-time decision to start, finished with 15 points, none in the fourth quarter. Nenad Krstic added 22 points.

``Just having Vince on the floor was a huge plus,'' Nets coach Lawrence Frank said. ``He could have very easily sat out. He obviously wasn't 100 per cent but he put the uniform on and gave us what he had.''

Mo Williams had a season-high 26 points for Milwaukee, which was playing on consecutive nights. Michael Redd added 25 points for the Bucks, who were without leading rebounder Charlie Villanueva. He hurt an elbow on Tuesday night and was sent back home for further evaluation.

``It was good to see Mo make some shots,'' Bucks coach Terry Stotts said. ``We had some good looks at the end of the fourth quarter to make it interesting. It's a game that you are disappointed that you don't come away with a win.''

The game was billed as a showdown of the NBA's top two scorers, Redd (32.1) and Carter (31.2).

It was Kidd who stole the show in nearly picking up his 78th career triple-double, which would have tied him third in NBA history with Wilt Chamberlain.

``He's awesome, there is nothing you can do about it,'' said Bucks forward Ruben Patterson, who added 15 points. ``He was hitting every shot he shot up. You really can't say anything, a guy on like that, there's nothing you can do.''

Kidd sparked the Nets' first-quarter run, during which New Jersey scored points on 10 straight possessions. He hit two layups, two free throws, a three-pointer and jumper in building a 24-11 lead.

New Jersey increased the margin to 41-27 with a 10-2 run to open the second quarter. At the centre of the scoring again was Kidd, who hit another three-pointer and picked up another bucket on a drive.

Milwaukee never completely went away, and pulled to within six on two occasions in the third quarter _ the last time at 66-60 on a three-point play by Williams. But Antoine Wright converted a three-point play and Milwaukee never got closer than eight points the rest of the way. NOTES: Redd had his 89th straight game in double figures scoring, replacing Terry Cummings for fourth best in team history. Cummings is also third with another 109-game run. ... Milwaukee is now 0-6 in games it has trailed after the first quarter. ... Brian Skinner started for Villanueva and had no points and five rebounds. ... Milwaukee centre Andrew Bogut was scoreless in more than 26 minutes. ..Krstic has scored more than 20 points in three straight games.