The Nets are on the verge of clinching a playoff berth for the fifth consecutive season. Brooklyn defeated the Detroit Pistons 123-108 Wednesday at Little Caesars Arena, bringing their magic number to secure the Eastern Conference's sixth seed down to one.

A 47-34 first-quarter advantage propelled the Nets to victory in the Motor City. Brooklyn's 47 points in the opening frame are the fourth-most in a quarter in franchise history. Joe Harris drained six threes in the period, matching the most he's scored in a quarter in his nine NBA seasons. The longest-tenured Net is shooting 45.5 percent from three (80-of-176) since Jan. 1, the NBA's third-best percentage among 64 players to make 78 or more triples.

Spencer Dinwiddie dished out 10 assists in the frame, becoming the third Nets player to do so since the NBA began tracking quarters in 1996-97. The performance comes after the Brooklyn point guard led the NBA with 146 total assists (9.7 per game) in March, the most recorded by a Net in a month in over a decade (Deron Williams had 154 in Jan. 2012).

Mikal Bridges led Brooklyn with 26 points and six assists on 10-of-26 shooting. The breakout forward has scored 20-plus points in 21 of his 25 games as a Net. Nic Claxton turned in another dominant two-way effort, scoring 19 points on 8-of-9 shooting to go with seven rebounds, three blocks and two steals. The 23-year-old leads the NBA with 251 stocks (steals + blocks) this season while posting the league's second-best field goal percentage (70.6).

Dorian Finney-Smith sat out with a wrist contusion after taking a hard fall in Brooklyn's loss to Minnesota Tuesday. Royce O'Neale stepped in to make his first start since the trade deadline and turned in one of his best performances of the season. The veteran stuffed the stat sheet with 19 points on 4-of-9 shooting from three to go with seven rebounds, eight assists and two blocks.

O'Neale is having the best season of his career after Brooklyn traded a first-round pick for him this summer, averaging career-highs in points (8.9) and assists (3.8) while shooting a career-best 39.2 percent from three on 5.5 attempts per game.

The victory comes after head coach Jacque Vaughn said Brooklyn had “player-led” discussions in the last week about the importance of locking down the sixth seed:

“It’s been more player-led, not from the coaching staff,” Vaughn said of the conversations. “Those guys have communicated with each other I think they know the importance of each game. They are cognizant of what’s going on in the league. We have a very aware group overall that pays attention and watches games when it isn’t our game, and so that’s a good thing. So overall those conversations have not been led by the coaches. It’s pretty much been the locker room.”

The win is the Nets' fifth in their last seven games. Brooklyn will close the regular season with home matchups against Orlando and Philadelphia. They can clinch the sixth seed with a win or a Miami loss.