MAKE A SWISH: Joe Johnson releases a go-ahead jumper over two Wizards in the final seconds of double OT, then celebrates the bucket with Nets teammates. (Getty Images (2))
WASHINGTON — The Nets did their best to lose last night. Fortunately for them, they were playing the Wizards.
Thanks to a Joe Johnson jumper with 0.7 seconds remaining, the Nets emerged with a wild 115-113 double-overtime victory over the Wizards in front of a crowd of 16,006 at Verizon Center.
“Joe Johnson came to the rescue,” Deron Williams said with a smile.
Johnson’s jumper over Wizards rookie Bradley Beal capped a game in which the Nets (18-15) trailed for nearly all of regulation and the first overtime before they managed to stage comebacks both times, only to see the Wizards tie the game twice at the buzzer.
Then, in the second overtime, the Nets jumped out to a five-point lead — their largest of the game — before the Wizards (4-27) made yet another comeback, this time tying the game with 9.1 seconds to go on a pair of free throws from Beal, who finished with a team-high 24 points.
That set the stage for Johnson, who hit a jumper from almost the identical spot on the court in Brooklyn three weeks ago to give the Nets a double-overtime victory over the Pistons, to rise up and drill an 18-footer to finally put the NBA’s worst team away for good. Johnson finished with 18 points.
“He’s a hell of a player,” Nets interim coach P.J. Carlesimo said. “That’s why we got him, and that’s what he does.”
That the Nets even had a chance to win the game was remarkable considering the position they found themselves in late in the first overtime, falling behind 101-93 with 1:27 to go after a pair of free throws from Jordan Crawford.
But Keith Bogans hit a 3-pointer with 1:14 remaining to cut the lead to five, quickly followed by Gerald Wallace stealing the ball from Crawford, getting fouled and making a pair of free throws that cut the lead to 101-98.
After Crawford came down and missed a jumper, Williams, who finished with 24 points, seven rebounds and 10 assists, drove to the bucket for an easy layup with 26.1 seconds left to cut the lead to 101-100.
Then, after Crawford was intentionally fouled with 15.1 seconds left, he missed a pair of free throws. Brook Lopez rebounded the second and inexplicably was fouled by Nene, allowing Lopez to go to the line and hit both free throws and give the Nets a 102-101 lead.
It looked like the Nets had finally managed to escape when Crawford missed a potential go-ahead jumper and Williams hit a pair of free throws to put the Nets up 104-101 with 3.4 seconds left. But then, after Nets chose not to foul, Beal calmly buried a 3-pointer to tie the game at the buzzer and send the game to the second overtime.
“We haven’t practiced it,” Carlesimo said of his decision not to have the Nets foul in that situation. “I like to foul, but if you haven’t practiced it … that’s on me. That’s something we need to practice, and then we can employ it.”
Despite facing the Wizards, who have lost 12 of their last 13 games, the Nets trailed until a MarShon Brooks layup that gave them an 86-84 lead.
Then, after taking a 93-91 lead with 3.2 seconds left on a massive tip-dunk by Lopez (27 points, 13 rebounds, three blocks), Nene managed to slip by Lopez at the other end for a matching bucket with 0.8 seconds left to send the game to overtime.
“I botched my defensive assignment,” Lopez said. “I shouldn’t have let him go so strong with his right hand, but he beat me.”
But the Nets managed to find a way to escape, and head home to face the Kings tonight in Brooklyn.
“We needed this one, especially going back home now and having a game [tonight],” Johnson said.