Kidd Breaks Out as Nets Get Even

Jason Kidd’s series-long slump ended, Kenyon Martin was energetic and the New Jersey Nets evened things up with the Detroit Pistons in yet another lopsided game.

Kidd had 22 points, 11 assists and 10 rebounds for his seventh career postseason triple-double, scoring nine consecutive third-quarter points when the Nets broke the game open for a 94-79 victory in Game 4 of their best-of-seven Eastern Conference semifinal series Tuesday night.

Kidd was shooting an abysmal 23% in the first three games, all of which were decided by double-digit margins. He made eight of 15 shots in Game 4 and received plenty of support from Martin, Richard Jefferson, Kerry Kittles and Lucious Harris.

“I called it. He hadn’t had a triple-double in the series. He was due for one,” Jefferson said. “J-Kidd is not going to shy away from a challenge. Sooner or later, those shots are going to fall.”

The home team has won every game in this series, tied 2-2.

The Pistons dominated the first two games with their defense, but the Nets thrived with their offensive versatility in Games 3 and 4.

New Jersey’s defense was not too shabby, either, with Martin showing the most aggression while outplaying Rasheed Wallace, who aggravated a foot injury in the first half. Also, Chauncey Billups strained his back in the first quarter and had his second poor game in a row.

“If Chauncey was healthy and Rasheed was healthy it wouldn’t have mattered tonight,” Piston Coach Larry Brown said. “They were great.

“To me, that’s the right way to play -- the way they’re playing,” Brown said.

Detroit was a one-man show on offense, getting 30 points from Richard Hamilton and no more than eight from anyone else. Billups, defended by Kittles, made two of seven shots for six points.

Martin had 16 points and 15 rebounds, and Jefferson scored 19.

“Both teams have gotten the job done at home, and we’ll see if that remains true,” Net Coach Lawrence Frank said. “We continue to get better, but we’re going to have to get it done on the road.”