It took the Nets just about three minutes to lose their momentum, their lead and Caris LeVert. Then they lost the game, falling 123-113 to the Rockets after their young guard was bloodied and knocked out of the game, adding injury to insult.
LeVert got hurt on a vicious screen by Rockets big man Nene, clearing the path for a Chris Paul layup that capped a 16-2 run and ended the third quarter. It turned a four-point lead into a double-digit deficit, with LeVert’s injury taking the wind out of the Nets’ collective sails.
The run grew to 23-8 in the fourth quarter, and the Nets (19-36) went on to lose for the seventh time in eight games, before 15,064 at Barclays Center.
James Harden poured in a game-high 36 points for Houston, and Paul add 25. Even though the Nets ran the Rockets off the line and limited their 3-point attempts, they never found a way to slow a team that shot 55.6 percent.
“When Caris went down it sucked a little bit of the life out of us. But at the end of the day I think we competed. We’ve got to do it again [Wednesday in Detroit],” said DeMarre Carroll, who said he felt like a worried parent seeing his second-year teammate go down in a heap. “I felt like — you know how when you’re a father and something happens to your kid at daycare? I was fixing to get thrown out.
“We don’t know if it was legal or illegal. But at the end of the day they could show us some decency and go watch it on film just to see. But that’s neither here nor there. … Hopefully he’ll be back with us soon.”
After trailing by 11, the Nets clawed back into the game.
They trailed 80-78 after Harden’s jumper with 4:48 left in the third, but Spencer Dinwiddie (18 points, nine assists) sandwiched 3-pointers around a Harden miss to give the Nets an 84-80 edge.
It didn’t last long. The Rockets went on an 11-0 run capped by Gerald Green’s 3-pointer to make it 91-84. By the time LeVert broke the drought with a pair of free throws in the final minute of the third, the game was all but decided.
LeVert getting knocked out of the game seconds later was the enduring image. He was running downcourt on defense and took a hard shot to the face from Nene. LeVert went down hard and there was considerable blood on the court as trainers from both teams rushed out to tend to him.
The young guard eventually left the court under his own power, and predictably didn’t return as he was evaluated for a concussion.
“I just saw the aftermath. There was blood all over the floor. He’s our brother, so we were really concerned. But I talked to him, he said he’s doing well. He doesn’t even remember what happened. It was unfortunate,” said Jahlil Okafor, who had 15 points in a season-high 25 minutes.
“It’s pick your poison with them, so we never really found a solution to stop them,” Nets coach Kenny Atkinson said. “I think [LeVert’s injury] moved all of us. I think we’re all affected. But we’re professionals and guys moved on. It’s just obvious we missed Caris the player. He was playing well, so that was a big blow.”
Atkinson dug into his bench, with Rashad Vaughn (acquired Monday night from the Bucks) making his Nets debut with 4:12 left. With two minutes left, the Nets had Vaughn, Okafor, Nik Stauskas, Isaiah Whitehead and James Webb III on the floor. They cut it to 117-111 before a dagger 3 from Harden.
“You’ve just got to compete [against Houston], hold your ground,” D’Angelo Russell said. “One-on-one matchups have got to be there, the rotation’s got to be there. They take advantage of every mental lapse.”