CLEVELAND — Deron Williams is officially back.
As Williams has flourished in the six weeks since the All-Star break in the wake of getting platelet rich plasma treatment and a third round of cortisone shots in his ailing ankles, there has been just one thing missing from his game — his first dunk of the season.
But that changed in the second quarter of the Nets’ 113-95 obliteration of the Cavaliers Wednesday night inside Quicken Loans Arena.
With 2:57 to go in the second, Williams brought the ball upcourt and blew past Cavaliers guard Wayne Ellington. From there, the Cavaliers defense parted like the Red Sea, allowing Williams to glide to the basket and slam the ball home.
That play was indicative of how the rest of the night went for the Nets (43-31), who cruised to their franchise record 21st road win of the season. The Nets not only set their franchise record for road wins and clinched a first-ever winning record away from home, they also finished the eight-game, 17-day Circus Trip with a 5-3 record, setting a record for the most wins on a road trip in franchise history.
The Nets also won it in style, coming out firing right from the opening tip, making 12 of their 19 shots in the first quarter to open a 28-20 lead after the first quarter and were led by MarShon Brooks, who poured in 11 points on 5-for-5 shooting.
But if there were any doubts about the way the game would play out, they were quickly erased in the second quarter, when the Nets shot an absurd 15-for-18 from the field, including going 5-for-6 from 3-point range, to outscore the Cavaliers 38-16 in the second and enter halftime with a commanding 66-36 lead.
Along with Williams, who finished the half 6-for-9 from the field for 18 points to go along with six assists, the Nets were led by a spectacular effort from Brooks, who got his first start of the season with Joe Johnson (sore left heel, right quadriceps contusion) and Gerald Wallace (sore left foot) sitting out last night’s game. Johnson, who has sat out five straight games, could return to the lineup tonight in Brooklyn.
Brooks went a perfect 9-for-9 in the first half, and finished the game 12-for-16 for a career-high 27 points to go along with seven assists as the Nets were able to put themselves on cruise control in the second half.
Williams finished with 24 points on 8-for-14 shooting — including 4-for-6 from 3-point range — to go along with eight assists, as the Nets were able to rest him and Brook Lopez (14 points and six rebounds) for the entire fourth quarter ahead of the team’s return to Brooklyn tonight against Chicago.
With their win, the Nets moved a full 2¹/₂ games ahead of the Bulls with just eight games to go heading into tonight’s nationally televised game in Brooklyn, where the Nets will be playing for the first time since March 17, and where a win would give them a stranglehold on fourth-place — and homecourt advantage — in the first round of the Eastern Conference playoffs.
tbontemps@nypost.com