Friday's Brooklyn Nets-Chicago Bulls matchup felt like just another game through two quarters. Then the second half came, and Brooklyn made history.
After trailing by five at the break, the Nets shot 18-of-24 from three in the second half to power themselves to a 125-108 victory. Their 18 second-half triples tie the NBA record for threes in a half. The mark had been reached four times before Friday, most recently by the Milwaukee Bucks during a win over the Phoenix Suns on March 17th.
“We were due for one of these games. We were due for one of them,” interim head coach Kevin Ollie said. “We got some good shooters out there. We haven't been shooting up to our capabilities. But they just stick with it. They just stayed with it. We had a great shootaround this morning, so I just love how they're showing connectivity no matter what's going on. They're staying in the present moment, which is great to see.”
Brooklyn's 18 second-half threes beat the previous franchise record of 16 threes in a half, set earlier this season against the Bulls during a November 26th win. The Nets ranked eighth in threes made per game (13.4), but 18th in three-point percentage (36.2) entering the matchup.
Nets' new-look trio dominates from distance

Brooklyn was powered by a new-look trio on Friday. Dennis Schroder (7-of-11), Mikal Bridges (7-of-11) and Cam Thomas (5-of-9) combined for 19 triples on the night. Brooklyn shot 17-of-46 from the field (37 percent) and 7-of-20 from three (35 percent) in the first half before the late-game explosion.
“That was actually crazy. The first half you wouldn’t have expected that,” Thomas said. “It just shows, just keep playing the full game, shots are gonna fall eventually. They just told me were 18-of-24 from three in the second half, like, you’re not gonna lose too many games like that. So that’s just a credit to everybody for sticking with it. Shots weren’t falling for nobody in the first half… we all just kept playing, locked in on the defensive end, and shots started to fall.”
Schroder has been among the NBA's top three-point shooters since Brooklyn acquired him at the trade deadline. The 30-year-old point guard has shot 45 percent from distance on 5.5 attempts per game over 20 appearances. He finished with 27 points on Friday, the second-most he's scored in a Nets uniform.
Thomas continued a career-best scoring stretch in the win, finishing with 28 points and four assists. The 22-year-old is averaging 26.3 points per game in March—the ninth-most in the NBA—on 48 percent shooting.
Bridges' hot performance is a welcome sight for Brooklyn after his extended struggles during the second half of the year. He finished with 28 points, three assists and four steals on his way to a plus-16 in 38 minutes.
Following road wins over the Toronto Raptors and Washington Wizards, the victory marks the first time the Nets have won three straight since early December. Brooklyn has little margin for error the rest of the way, trailing the Atlanta Hawks by five-and-a-half games for the Eastern Conference's final play-in spot with eight remaining.
Ollie's squad will be back in action Sunday vs. the Los Angeles Lakers before a pair of matchups with the Indiana Pacers.