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Nets outlast Raptors in triple OT, sweep London set

Mar 6, 2011 - 1:05 AM London, England (Sports Network) - It took three overtimes and eight points from Travis Outlaw in the final period, but the New Jersey Nets finally topped the Toronto Raptors, 137-136, in just under 3 1/2 hours of play, to sweep the two-game series at London's O2 Arena.

"Well I am exhausted," Nets coach Avery Johnson said. "It's a good feeling, our guys were just terrific tonight. We had opportunities to quit but we didn't."

Brook Lopez paced the Nets with 34 points, 14 rebounds and a career-high eight blocks, despite fouling out with 4:14 remaining in the second overtime. Deron Williams added 21 points and 18 assists in the win.

"Williams' spirit has infiltrated our team and it's great," Johnson continued. "This is a good team win."

Sasha Vujacic posted 25 points, including a three-pointer to send the game into the second overtime. Kris Humphries added 20 points and 17 rebounds for the Nets, who have won back-to-back games following a six-game skid.

The Nets won the first game of the historic series on Friday, 116-103, marking the first ever regular-season game played in London.

Andrea Bargnani led Toronto with 35 points and 12 rebounds with DeMar DeRozan adding 30 points in the loss. Leandro Barbosa tallied 22 points in a reserve role and Ed Davis supplied 12 points and a team-best 15 rebounds.

"This was a great game for our guys to play in," Raptors coach Jay Triano said. "Any time we can put our guys in a situation where there is a chance to win a game on the last possession, this is part of the growth we are looking for."

The game entered the third overtime tied at 126, and the Nets rattled off seven straight points to open the stanza, creating what they thought was a comfortable lead. Outlaw capped the spurt with a jumper just under two minutes remaining, but after a quick timeout the Raptors started a late surge.

Barbosa's basket at 1:47 started a 10-2 clip, that he capped with a three- pointer with 20.9 seconds remaining, giving Toronto a 136-135 lead. Forced to foul, the Raptors sent Outlaw to the line with 12.6 ticks left of the clock, he made both, and Bargnani's attempt at the win was off target to end the marathon paced game.

Both the first and second overtime periods were back-and-forth efforts with neither team able to create a lead greater then three. Barbosa gave Toronto a 119-116 lead inside the final minute of the first OT, but Vujacic connected on a 26-footer with 9.2 ticks left, sending the game into the second extra period tied at 119.

Lopez was called for an offensive foul just 46 seconds into the second overtime but the Nets' nucleus held tough with Williams adding a short jumper in the final second to send the game into the third overtime tied at 126.

DeRozan paced the Raptors with 13 points in the first quarter as Toronto held a 30-23 lead after one. New Jersey shot 68 percent from the field in the second, taking a 65-62 lead into the half.

The Raptors cut the deficit in the third, and Jerryd Bayless added two from the line in the final seconds, sending the game into the fourth quarter tied at 88.

Toronto widened its lead to as high a 101-94 just over the midway point of the fourth, but the Nets methodically cut their deficit. After taking a lead in the final minutes DeRozan connected on a driving layup to send the game into overtime tied at 110.

Game Notes

Toronto has lost four of five overall and has not won on the road since January 5...The Nets are now 2-9 against Atlantic Division opponents...This was the second triple-overtime game for the Nets this season, they fell to Oklahoma City 123-120 on December 1...Outlaw finished with 14 points and seven rebounds...Vujacic made 6-of-9 from three-point range...The game featured 27 ties.