(SportsNetwork.com) - The Brooklyn Nets evened their first-round series with the top-seeded Atlanta Hawks, but Game 5 shifts back to Philips Arena Wednesday night.
The home team has prevailed in this matchup, which is knotted at 2-2.
After the Hawks won both contests in Atlanta, two very competitive games, the Nets successfully defended their home court in Games 3 and 4. It's now a three-game series with the Hawks trying to advance after a historic season.
Atlanta set a franchise record with 60 victories during the regular season, but find themselves in a somewhat unexpected fight. The Nets finished below .500 during the campaign, but that means nothing come postseason time.
One year ago, the Hawks took the heavily-favored Indiana Pacers to seven games in the first round as the No. 8 seed in the Eastern Conference. They were eliminated, but took the first seed in the conference for the first time since the 1993-94 season.
Things didn't go as planned in Brooklyn. On Monday, Deron Williams turned back the clock for the Nets with 35 points to lead Brooklyn to a 120-115 overtime win in Game 4.
After totaling just 18 points in the first three games, Williams tied his career playoff highs for points and field goals made at 13. He hadn't scored 35 points since going for 42 against Washington in a game on March 8, 2013.
"It feels great to get the win, that's the most important thing," Williams said. "This was a team win all the way. We fought and we scrapped. There was never any let up."
Brook Lopez added 26 points and 10 rebounds, Joe Johnson scored 17 and three other Nets finished in double digits. Bojan Bogdanovic scored 15 points for the Nets, Alan Anderson had 11 off the bench and Thaddeus Young added 10 points and seven rebounds.
They shot almost 48 percent from the floor as a team and made 14-of-31 3- pointers, led by Williams' seven
"They rallied around him," Nets coach Lionel Hollins said. "I think it was a huge, huge step in unity for our team."
The Hawks, who were done in by a poor shooting performance in Saturday's Game 3, were much better from the field on Monday but blew a 12-point lead in the second half.
DeMarre Carroll and Jeff Teague scored 20 points each in the loss, leading a well-balanced effort by the starting five. Al Horford added 17 points and Paul Millsap and Kyle Korver each scored 16 and grabbed a combined 23 rebounds.
"At this point, it's important that when you get an opportunity, you take advantage of it," said Hawks coach Mike Budenholzer. "Credit to them. They made a lot of plays down the stretch. It's a great challenge for us to go home. This is the playoffs. This is what it's all about."
The Nets took the lead for good on Bogdanovic's 3 with around 1 1/2 minutes left in overtime. Later, Korver missed three consecutive 3-point attempts with a chance to tie the score for Atlanta. The second and third shots came after Carroll secured offensive rebounds.
Williams had 33 points in regulation and made two foul shots down the stretch in overtime to help Brooklyn hold on.
Game 6 will be Friday night at the Barclays Center.
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