Born to shun

Nets' defense ties up a series that's hard on the eyes

EAST RUTHERFORD, N.J. -- With their NBA title hopes on the line, the Nets pulled out all the stops Wednesday night in Game 4 of the Finals.

Born to Run blared on the loudspeaker. The Devils hoisted the Stanley Cup. Bruce Willis grabbed a microphone to exhort the crowd.

But the biggest stops were the ones they made on defense, especially during the frantic final minutes. That’s why the Nets are still alive today.

"Our halfcourt defense tonight was fantastic," New Jersey coach Byron Scott said.

From Rodney Rogers ripping the ball away from Tim Duncan to force a jump ball to Lucious Harris crashing out of bounds to save another possession, the Nets kept making plays. While they definitely got some help from the refs (you're welcome, coach Scott), the Nets also played with the desperation and fury of a group aware that no team in NBA Finals history has come back from a 3-1 deficit. Thirteen blocked shots (four each from Dikembe Mutombo and Aaron Williams) told the story.

At the end it came down to Manu Ginobili’s errant 3-point attempt -- contested by Kenyon Martin flying at him -- that saved the Nets' season and evened the series at 2-2.

SI.com On Site  Marty Burns: With their NBA title hopes on the line, the Nets pulled out all the stops Wednesday night in Game 4 of the Finals. • Click here for more  Analysis and Opinion  • Fast Breaks: Second-guessing Pop • Rushin: San Antonio loves its Spurs • Picks: Burns | Hollinger | McCallum More Stories  • Game 4: Recap | Box Score • Admiral unhappy with Parker's shots • Kittles puts clamps on Parker • Mutombo giving Duncan problems • Nets win Game 4 with defense • Spurs again miss a 3 at the end • Notebook: Jefferson hits the boards   Instant Poll  Who should Gregg Popovich have played at point guard in the final minutes of Game 4? Speedy Claxton Steve Kerr Tony Parker View Results

"They are playing good defense," said Duncan, one of the few Spurs to show up in Game 4. "Give them credit."

Duncan is too polite, of course, to say the other reason for why San Antonio shot horrid 28.9 percent from the floor. In short, too many of his fellow Spurs played like spit. Malik Rose (0-of-9), Tony Parker (1-of-12), Stephen Jackson (1-of-9) and Bruce Bowen (2-of-9) might as well have been at a Broadway show.

As Spurs coach Gregg Popovich deadpanned: "Shooting was a little bit of a problem."

Unless San Antonio starts making some outside shots, the Spurs could be in trouble. For the second time in the series, Mutombo used his length to wreak havoc for Duncan and Co. inside. He also fired up the Meadowlands crowd when he rose up to block a Rose dunk attempt in the first quarter, thereby gaining a measure of sweet revenge for Rose’s poster job over him in Game 3.

"I was looking for who was going to come in the paint and dunk on me again," Mutombo said. "I don’t think I really appreciated everything they were saying about me."

Richard Jefferson also enjoyed a signature highlight, climbing the stairway to heaven to throw down a one-handed jam over 40-year-old Spurs center Kevin Willis. The play seemed to spark Jefferson, who awoke from his Finals coma to finish with 18 points and 10 rebounds. "If you want to talk about dunks, we have some guys out there that can get some," Jefferson said.

Thanks to such inspired play, the Nets were able to overcome their own miserable shortcomings. They shot 35.9 percent. They allowed the Spurs to grab 22 offensive rebounds. If the refs hadn’t bailed the Nets out on several calls (Martin was swatted twice on a layup attempt under the basket before the refs called a foul on Kevin Willis, enabling New Jersey to take its final lead at 73-72 and spare Martin the infamy of becoming the next Charles Smith) they easily could be in big trouble.

As it is, the NBA is the one in trouble right now. TV ratings for this year’s Finals are falling faster than Martha Stewart’s stock price. Meanwhile, the play on the court is getting uglier by the game.

"It wasn’t very pretty," Scott admitted. "It’s going to be a defensive battle. It’s going to be low-scoring. This series is going to be played like this pretty much the whole series. Might as well get used to it."

Forget the Stanley Cup champion Devils. Maybe the NBA could get the Lakers or Mavs to show up for Game 5?