Dennis Schroder and Cam Johnson each score 20 points as undersized Nets beat Grizzlies again

It wasn’t David vs Goliath, but the Nets noticeably lacked size when they tipped off Monday with one healthy center against 7-4 Grizzlies rookie Zach Edey.

Noah Clowney was ruled out with right hip soreness from a late-game injury Sunday. It allowed Nic Claxton to make his long-awaited first start this season after being on a minutes restriction while returning from injury.

The smaller Nets didn’t back down, earning a 106-104 victory at Barclays Center when Santi Aldama’s three-point attempt fell short. It gave the Nets their second win against the Grizzlies in less than a week and third win in the last four games.

Edey tied the score at 101 with 1:30 left, but the Nets (4-4) struck back. Dorian Finney-Smith’s fifth three-pointer gave them a 104-101 lead and Dennis Schroder attacked Edey with a layup that put the Nets up five with 32.1 seconds left.

Jaren Jackson Jr. banked in a three-pointer to cut the lead to 106-104, and the Nets followed that up with a shot-clock violation after calling timeout when Cam Johnson’s shot fell short.

Yet they survived the Grizzlies’ final possession, with Schroder poking the ball away from Ja Morant and Aldama recovering it for an off-balance shot.

“The coaches did a great job showing us the play in the timeout, so we saw it coming,” said Schroder, who had 20 points and six assists.

“We pressured. We did a great job tonight overall, just being physical, disrupting, and the last play was luckily good for us.”

The Grizzlies’ starting frontcourt featured Edey and two 6-11 forwards in Jackson and Aldama. Despite giving up 66 paint points, the Nets countered by holding Memphis (4-4) to 8-for-30 shooting on three-pointers.

They also outscored the visitors 15-14 on second-chance points. Finney-Smith was 0-for-4 in the first half but shot 6-for-6 in the second to finish with 17 points.

“They’ve still been telling me to shoot the ball every time I’m open,” he said. “It feels good when the guys around you have your back even when you’re not making shots.”

Jalen Wilson, playing on his 24th birthday, added 13 points off the bench. Cam Thomas had 13 points and six assists to offset another tough shooting night (6-for-17).

It was the response that’s come to define the Nets early in coach Jordi Fernandez’s tenure. A tough loss to the Pistons on Sunday left them bothered, and the Nets responded by relying on their defense to set the tone.

It showed up in the second quarter as they held the Grizzlies to 19 points. Morant finished with 25 points, nine assists and a pair of dazzling 360-degree layups, but he was 1-for-6 in the fourth quarter, with Schroder leading the defensive charge.

“It starts with him. He gets engaged in the game just when he’s guarding the other team’s primary ballhandler,” Fernandez said.  “For him to play at both ends, for him to guard at that level and then organize everybody and then score, it’s pretty impressive.”

Edey, the ninth pick in last summer’s draft, had his best game as a pro with 25 points and 12 rebounds.

Claxton finished with 10 points, eight rebounds and two steals in 27 minutes. He said he felt comfortable being back in his starting role.

“It’s just still getting back into the swing of things,” he said. “I had like one stint where I was really tired, but other than that, I was good.”

Time will tell if his return is permanent. Fernandez said Clowney’s hip is bruised and sore, but an MRI came back clean from any damage and he’s expected to return soon.

The Nets have time to heal and assess their bigs after playing five games in seven days with a 3-2 record. With the NBA off Tuesday to observe Election Day, the Nets don’t play again until Friday in Boston to start a three-game road trip.

For the second time in a week, they won the second night of a back-to-back, relying on the toughness that Fernandez has preached since training camp.

“It wasn’t always pretty out there, but it was very competitive,” he said.

“It was a grind. I think, once again, the Brooklyn Grit showed up and we ended up with a win.”

By Evan Barnes

evan.barnes@newsday.comevan_b

Evan Barnes covers the Nets for Newsday. He previously covered Memphis football and the Memphis Grizzlies and also covered prep sports in Los Angeles.