PUSH COMES TO SHOVE: The Nets and Celtics got into a tussle last night when: Kris Humphries fouled Kevin Garnett. Garnett hits the floor hard, which Rajon Rondo (far right) doesn’t like. Rondo shoves Humphries (above) and others get involved leading to a pileup under the basket. (Getty Images)
Kris Humphries to the basket against Boston last night before being ejected in the second quarter. (
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BOSTON — You can take the Nets out of Brooklyn, but you can’t take Brooklyn out of the Nets.
What eventually became a 95-83 win over Boston was overshadowed by a fight late in the second quarter that resulted in ejections for Kris Humphries and Gerald Wallace for the Nets and Rajon Rondo for the Celtics.
“We can’t back down,” Deron Williams said afterward. “It’s not about being a tough guy or anything like that. We’re just not going to back down from anybody.
“We did a good job of keeping our composure. … They did a good job of making a run in the second half, but we were able to withstand that, keep our focus mentally and finish the game.”
It looked like the Nets were well on their way to a comfortable win over the Celtics before all hell broke loose with 29.5 seconds left in the first half. With the Nets leading 51-35, Kevin Garnett took the ball on the right side and drove toward the basket.
Garnett went up for a shot and was fouled by Humphries, who then followed through on the play and hit Garnett as the Celtics star fell to the floor. A technical foul was immediately called on Humphries, but almost as soon as the foul had been called, Rondo stormed over to Humphries and shoved him in the chest. Humphries then got wrapped up with Rondo, who drove him back into the stands underneath the Celtics basket.
A melee quickly ensued, with Paul Pierce rushing in to get a piece of Humphries, as Rondo looked to get at least two or three punches in on the Nets forward. At the same time, Wallace and Garnett got tangled up with one another along the baseline in front of Boston’s bench.
“At that point we’re getting our tails kicked and we’re probably frustrated,” Celtics coach Doc Rivers said. “But that’s … listen, that foul was a hard foul. It was an unnecessary foul … the play was over and then [Humphries] pushed [Garnett] down in the air.
“But obviously I think that’s what they think of us. … They think they can push [us] around.”
The three referees — James Capers, Kevin Fehr and Kane Fitzgerald — went to the scorer’s table and reviewed the play. They chose to eject Rondo immediately, give Humphries a pair of technicals, which resulted in an ejection, and Wallace and Garnett each a technical. But, because Wallace had gotten a technical 33 seconds earlier for complaining when he thought Rondo fouled him and it wasn’t called, he had two technicals and was ejected.
“Rondo initiated everything that proceeded after the foul,” Capers, the crew chief, told a pool reporter after the game. “And when he and Humphries go into the stands, they are involved in a fight. Fighting is an automatic ejection.”
Humphries, Wallace and Rondo all declined to speak to reporters after the game. Nets coach Avery Johnson said he wasn’t concerned about the possibility of either Humphries or Wallace getting suspended further.
The Nets got big contributions from their bench — led by 18 points from Joe Johnson, 17 points and 13 rebounds from backup center Andray Blatche and 17 points from Jerry Stackhouse — to overcome the loss of two starters for the entire second half.
“We were in a tough spot losing two of our tough guys,” Joe Johnson said. “We had other guys off the bench ready to come in to produce and make plays and play big minutes for us down the stretch.
“It just goes to show that when your number is called, you got to be ready.”
tbontemps@nypost.com