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NEW YORK -- In their previous game against New Orleans, the Brooklyn Nets pulled off an impressive feat: They were able to win even though all their starters were held to single digits in points. Against the Charlotte Bobcats on Wednesday night, the Nets found the 10-point plateau a little easier to clear. Five players scored in double figures for the Nets as they easily defeated Charlotte 105-89 at Barclays Center. Paul Pierce led the way with 25 points for Brooklyn, including 5-for-5 shooting from 3-point range. Deron Williams added 13 points and seven assists, and Andre Blatche scored 13 off the bench. Brooklyn was 13 of 31 from beyond the arc. The Nets were consistently able to use dribble penetration and solid ball movement to find the open man. And when they got open looks, they took advantage. Pierce said ball movement has been the difference in his teams resurgence of late, and it was largely responsible for his big night against the Bobcats. "When we make the extra pass, the ball is eventually going to find the open man," Pierce said. "Ive been a product of that as of late, and Im knocking down shots right now." Nets coach Jason Kidd agreed that ball movement was critical to his clubs success, but thought its defensive play in limiting Al Jefferson to 12 points was equally crucial. "It all started on the defensive end," Kidd said. "Getting stops and then being able to take advantage. ... We wanted to double-team (Jefferson) a little bit early to not let him get in a rhythm. The guys executed the game plan." Kemba Walker led the Bobcats with 16 points. Jefferson, who scored at least 26 in each of his previous three games, was held to 5-for-13 shooting. With the win, the Nets improved to 14-5 this calendar year. Pierce believes that as good as things have been for Brooklyn lately, the Nets have the potential to get even better as they get more comfortable with each other. "Weve developed some chemistry since the new year. I mean, you can tell by the way weve moved the ball, the way were defending. Everybody seems to be on the same page. And when you have that type of chemistry, and that type of talent, were going to be a tough team to beat when we put it together," he said. Brooklyn went on a 15-3 run to open the third quarter, extending its lead to 17, and never looked back. The lopsided margin of victory afforded Kidd the opportunity to rest his starters for much of the fourth quarter. With a quick turnaround Thursday night against Chicago to close out the first-half schedule, Kidd recognized the importance of being able to get his key players a breather. "A veteran ballclub understands that the games right before the break are important because youre planning vacations, or planning to go to All-Star weekend, and sometimes the game becomes secondary," he said. "A lot of the guys, for the most part, didnt play a lot of minutes, so well see what happens tomorrow." Charlotte got off to a solid start offensively in its final game before the All-Star break. But the Bobcats struggled mightily after that, putting up a meagre 34 points combined in the second and third quarters. Bobcats coach Steve Clifford thought the fact that his club only turned the ball over 10 times was somewhat misleading. He thought his team was listless, and made a number of unforced errors that cost it a chance to win. "You have to play with more discipline," Clifford said. "When the chance is there to make a play, you have to make it. I thought our turnovers were just terrible." The Bobcats defeated Dallas at home Tuesday, but Jefferson didnt think the loss could be chalked up to fatigue. "They were ready and we werent," he said. "We cant just have excuses because we played last night. Thats the NBA; we have to be ready to play these types of games, especially to be a playoff team." The Bobcats have lost their last nine games when finishing off a back-to-back. Clifford understands that needs to change if his squad is going to contend for a playoff spot. "The bottom line is we have to be able to play better in these games," Clifford said. "The second night of back-to-backs earlier in the year, we were better. The last few times back-to-backs, weve been inconsistent." The Bobcats will be have a chance to reverse the trend right away when they open the second half with a back-to-back against the Detroit Pistons starting next Tuesday. NOTES: Pierce scored 14 of his 25 points in the third. ... The Nets have won four straight at Barclays Center, and 11 of their last 13. ... One night after posting a season-high 54.9 field goal percentage, Charlotte managed only 41.4 per cent from the floor. ... The Nets will play their next seven games on the road, starting with a national TV date against Chicago on Thursday night. Carmelo Anthony Jersey . 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Mike Trout, Josh Hamilton and Kole Calhoun all homered to help the Los Angeles Angels get their first win of the season with an 11-1 rout of the Houston Astros.CHICAGO -- Leury Garcia did all he could to stay ready, to be prepared when his chance came. When he got it, he sure did deliver. Garcia drove in the winning run with a pinch-hit single off Michael Morin in the ninth inning to lift the Chicago White Sox to a 3-2 victory over the Los Angeles Angels on Wednesday night. The White Sox shook off a doubleheader sweep and finally took out the Angels after dropping their first five games this season and seven straight overall to them. Jose Abreu extended his hitting streak to 17 games, and Chicago prevailed after blowing a two-run lead on a cool, rainy night. Los Angeles tied it on solo homers by David Freese in the seventh and Josh Hamilton in the eighth, only to lose on Garcias line-drive single in the ninth -- a big hit by a backup infielder with just a .192 average. "Its kind of tough when you dont play every day, but Im still working," he said. "Im still working. Im still trying to get better every day and be ready for situations." Alejandro De Aza, who entered earlier as a runner for Paul Konerko, started the winning rally with a one-out single off Morin (2-2). Conor Gillaspie followed with a broken-bat single past a diving Albert Pujols at first base to put runners on the corners. The Angels then brought in Kole Calhoun to replace right fielder Collin Cowgill and serve as the second baseman as part of a five-man infield. Garcia, batting for Moises Sierra, lined a 2-1 pitch to left to drive in De Aza. That made a winner of Zach Putnam (3-1), who worked 1 1-3 scoreless innings. "We could have folded a lot of times. I feel like we do battle and compete the right way," said Gordon Beckham, who broke out of a 12-for-74 slump with two hits and a run. "Hopefully, a lot more wins (are coming)." Chicagos Alexei Ramirez drove in the first two runs with a bases-loaded single off Tylerr Skaggs in the fourth.dddddddddddd It stayed that way until the seventh, when Freese went deep. Josh Hamilton tied it at 2 with two outs in the eighth when he chased John Danks with his fifth homer and second in three games. That drive came right after Albert Pujols hit a fly to the warning track in centre. The White Sox left Danks in even though Hamilton came into the game with a .438 average against him, and he pulled a pitch out to right. The home runs spoiled an otherwise outstanding performance by Danks, who tied a career high with 10 strikeouts while giving up seven hits and one walk in 7 2-3 innings. Skaggs wasnt bad, either, after missing nearly a month with a strained right hamstring. He also gave up two runs in 7 2-3 innings, scattering just five hits while striking out six and walking one. He threw 87 pitches -- 70 for strikes. "I was kind of locked into the game, just excited to pitch after a month," Skaggs said. "It has been a long time. The team has been winning and I want to be a part of that. I was like a kid in a candy store, I was so excited." Skaggs got a big assist in the first when Hamilton made a leaping catch in left to rob Beckham of a solo homer, but other than a shaky fourth, he didnt run into much trouble. NOTES: The Angels Mike Trout was the AL Player of the Month for June after batting .361 with seven homers. ... Abreu became the first White Sox player to be selected AL Rookie of the Month twice, taking the honour for June after hitting .313 with 10 homers and 22 RBIs. He was also the AL Player and Rookie of the Month for April. ... The White Sox have a day off before opening a three-game series against Seattle on Friday, with LHP Chris Sale (7-1, 2.30 ERA) Roenis Elias (7-6, 3.96). ... RHP Matt Shoemaker (5-2, 4.50) starts Thursday for the Angels against Houston, while LHP Brett Oberholtzer (2-6, 4.40) pitches for the Astros. ' ' '