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Tuesday, Feb. 6 7:30pm ET
Nets survive poor fourth quarter

RECAP | BOX SCORE | GAME FLOW

EAST RUTHERFORD, N.J. (AP) ? Keith Van Horn and the New Jersey Nets learned an important lesson from the New York Knicks.

Van Horn had 23 points and 12 rebounds as the Nets held off a late rally and beat the Atlanta Hawks 90-84 on Tuesday night.

Van Horn credited the Knicks, who beat New Jersey 95-71 on Friday, with showing the Nets the importance of defense and rebounding.

"I think we learned a lot from them," Van Horn said. "We saw how they played defense from inside out, and how they rebounded as a team. That's the cornerstone of their team, the cornerstone of any winning team. I think we've done that the last two games."

Stephon Marbury added 16 points and Johnny Newman finished with 11 for the Nets, who won their second straight.

DerMarr Johnson and Jason Terry each had 13 points, and Dikembe Mutombo had 12 points and 11 rebounds for the Hawks, who lost their fourth straight.

The Nets opened a 69-47 lead midway through the third period, but struggled in the fourth, shooting just 4-for-19. The Nets committed five turnovers and did not score their first field goal until 8:02 remained when Van Horn hit a 3-pointer.

"A win is a win," said Nets coach Byron Scott said, whose team beat Philadelphia 96-89 Sunday. "We're going to take as many as we can get. Obviously, we didn't play with the same intensity as we did against Philadelphia, but we're going to try and keep it going. I'm hoping we can put a third win together before the All-Star break."

Atlanta opted for a small lineup in the fourth quarter, leaving Mutombo on the bench for the entire period.

"We had a tough time getting anything going," said Atlanta coach Lon Kruger, whose team committed a season-high 27 turnovers. "Obviously, the group in there late did a nice job of getting it back within reach. We can't use being tired as an excuse. A lot of teams play four games in five days."

The Hawks scored the first six points of the quarter, including four by Roshown McLeod. Atlanta outscored the Nets 11-6 and closed within 76-70 on Lorenzen Wright's basket with 5:25 remaining.

But Van Horn converted three straight free throws, one a technical for illegal defense, and Newman had a three-point play as the Nets held on for the win.

"We didn't play very well in the fourth quarter but guys stepped up and made big plays for us when we needed them," Van Horn said.

The Nets opened the second period with an 18-6 run for a 44-27 lead.

Atlanta countered by scoring eight of the last 10 points in the first half and closed within 50-39 at the intermission.

Game notes
Nets forward Jamie Feick, who has missed 50 games this year since undergoing Achilles surgery in October, sat out again and may not return until after the All-Star break. ... Nets center Evan Eschmeyer, who missed practice Monday with an intestinal virus, was in the starting lineup. ... Hawks forward Lorenzen Wright, who missed Monday's game against Dallas with the flu, also returned to the starting lineup.
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RECAPS
Orlando 109
Charlotte 83

Detroit 94
Denver 83

New Jersey 90
Atlanta 84

Miami 102
Indiana 89

Milwaukee 112
Sacramento 109

Phoenix 97
Chicago 80


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