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Nets take losing ways to Washington

Jan 16, 2015 - 2:26 PM (SportsNetwork.com) - The Brooklyn Nets have dropped seven in a row and snapping out of that funk won't be easy Friday night when they stop by the Verizon Center to take on the Washington Wizards.

Friday is game one of a home-and-home series as the two teams will meet in Brooklyn on Saturday.

Brooklyn hasn't won since Jan. 2 against the Orlando Magic down in Florida. Since, the Nets have lost two in a row on the road and haven't cracked the 100-point plateau during this rut.

Things have gotten so bad in Brooklyn that reports indicate owner Mikhail Prokhorov is looking to sell the team. Adrian Wojnarowski of Yahoo! Sports reported on Thursday that the Nets have once again engaged in serious talks about trading former All-Star center Brook Lopez.

On the court, the losing streak reached seven on Wednesday night thanks to a 103-92 home loss to the Memphis Grizzlies, head coach Lionel Hollins' former team.

Mason Plumlee paced Brooklyn with 15 points and nine rebounds, with Mirza Teletovic going 4-of-7 from 3-point range to record 12 points in defeat.

Lopez, Darius Morris and Bojan Bogdanovic all scored 11 for the Nets, who played without Kevin Garnett. Garnett was suspended for his role in an incident with Dwight Howard on Monday.

Jarrett Jack scored 10 points in the recent defeat.

The Grizzlies blew the game open with a 10-0 run in the third quarter. Memphis led by 17 after three and the closest the Nets got was 10 points in the final minute.

"We just couldn't score consistently," Hollins said. "They're a very good defensive team, a very good rebounding team. That's why they're one of the best teams in the league."

The Wizards have won two straight and five of their last six. The only setback during that time was a 31-point road loss to the Atlanta Hawks, who lead the Wiz by four games for Eastern Conference supremacy.

On Wednesday, the Wizards knocked off the Chicago Bulls, 105-99, at the United Center.

John Wall had 21 points and nine assists to lead Washington. Paul Pierce posted 22 points and six rebounds, while Bradley Beal added 17 points, six assists and five boards for the Wizards.

Nene contributed 13 points and Marcin Gortat supplied 11 points and nine rebounds.

After a Taj Gibson dunk capped an 8-2 run to claw the Bulls within 83-82 prior to the midway point of the fourth quarter, the Wizards responded with a 12-3 surge to regain control.

Chicago never got within less than six the rest of the way.

"We withstood their run and made it a game in the third and fourth quarter and took over," Wall said.

The Wizards, who shot 51.3 percent from the field, outscored the Bulls, 32-19, in the third.

This is the first meeting of the season between the two teams, but the Wizards own a three-game winning streak against the Nets. The Wiz have also won three straight in Washington versus Brooklyn.