A Flat Fourth, and a Loss

When the Brooklyn Nets went ice cold from the field on Sunday night, there was no one to rescue them this time.

Not even the Truth.

Paul scored a team-high 22 points (9 of 14, 3 of 7 from 3PT) in Brooklyn’s 87-79 loss at home to the Toronto Raptors, which evened the opening round playoff series at two games apiece.

But neither he nor any of his teammates were able to score for the final six minutes and 13 seconds of the fourth quarter. A 77-73 lead transformed into a defeat, and afterward, No. 34 and his teammates were left searching for answers.

As Paul told the Associated Press:

“You get in a playoff situation, one guy, or two or three guys, wants to do it on their own instead of just running our offense, executing. And I think we got caught up into that,” said Pierce, adding that the Nets were rushing and pressing.

At the end of three quarters, it appeared the outcome would be different, and that No. 34’s offensive performance would carry the outcome. Paul, who added five rebounds, two assists and a steal, helped Brooklyn overcome a 17-point deficit to tie the game at 67-67 at the start of the final frame.