Michael Porter Jr. scores 35 points as Nets roll past Pelicans for third win in four games

C.J. Holmes, New York Daily News on Dec 6, 2025

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NEW YORK — Continuing his offensive onslaught, Michael Porter Jr. tied his season high with 35 points while Day’Ron Sharpe added 16 off the bench as the Nets improved to 6-17 and picked up their third win in four games Saturday afternoon at Barclays Center, 119-101, against a short-handed New Orleans Pelicans team featuring impressive rookies Jeremiah Fears and Derik Queen.

With the team’s recent surge and a positive injury update on Cam Thomas earlier in the day, the arrow is finally pointing up for Brooklyn, lottery odds be damned. After looking borderline unwatchable through the season’s opening stretch, the Nets are slowly becoming a team worth tuning in for.

The Nets opened with a balanced offensive burst from all five starters, led by Porter, who poured in nine first-quarter points and continued to showcase his three-level scoring touch. Brooklyn had its hands full with Trey Murphy early but still held New Orleans below 40% shooting for much of the period. Even after head coach Jordi Fernández went to a full platoon swap with 3:59 left, the reserves kept the energy up and the pressure on.

Sharpe provided an immediate lift with seven quick points on a 3-for-3 start, Drake Powell buried his 12th 3-pointer of the season and the Nets took a 35-24 lead into the second quarter. Danny Wolf briefly looked like he’d punctuated the quarter with an 18-foot heave at the horn after a slick string of dribble moves, but the shot was waved off on review.

Brooklyn’s control over its injured, struggling Western Conference opponent only grew over the next 12 minutes. After holding a double-digit lead for most of the period, the Nets closed the half on a barrage of five straight 3s in the final 3:38 — one from Egor Dëmin, two from Porter and one from Terance Mann — before Porter capped the surge with a short turnaround jumper to send Brooklyn into the break up 62-44.

It marked Porter’s fourth 20-point half of the season (22 points) and his third in an opening half. The Nets went into the locker room shooting 62.5%, with nine made 3s, a 32-26 edge in the paint and 11 forced turnovers. Nic Claxton added seven assists in the half, tied for the fourth most of his career. Brooklyn also finished the half with 22 assists, its most in any half this season, and closed the game with a season-high 36.

Despite dominating the first half, the Nets edged the third quarter 34-31 behind strong offensive bursts from Porter and Ziaire Williams off the bench, taking a 21-point lead into the fourth. And after blowing a nine-point cushion in the final quarter against the Utah Jazz on Wednesday, this time they needed to prove they could close.

New Orleans cut the lead to 15 with 2:26 remaining but never threatened a real comeback until Fernández turned to his youngsters to close it out. Wolf and fellow rookie Ben Saraf answered with back-to-back 3s to seal the win.

Brooklyn’s 18-point win was its second largest of the season, and Claxton recorded his second career triple-double with 14 points, 10 rebounds and 10 assists. He became the first Net to post multiple triple-doubles in a season since James Harden (nine) and Kevin Durant (four) in 2021-22.

Murphy led the Pelicans with 23 points, four rebounds and four assists.

After failing to reach the knockout rounds of the NBA Cup, the Nets will have five days off before facing the Dallas Mavericks at American Airlines Center on Friday.