EAST RUTHERFORD, New Jersey (Ticker) -- The New Jersey Nets are slowly getting back to being a great team at home.
Richard Jefferson scored a season-high 31 points and Kenyon Martin added 25 as the Nets dominated the third quarter in a 101-88 victory over the Seattle SuperSonics.
New Jersey was 33-8 in each of its previous two years at the Meadowlands but had lost six of its first eight games here this season. The Nets completed a four-game homestand with three straight wins and looked the like the two-time defending Eastern Conference champions on Tuesday.
"We are not there yet, but we are getting better," New Jersey coach Byron Scott said. "As far as the last game is concerned, we got better. That's what we're trying to do each and every game. If anyone thinks that we've arrived and we're there, they're wrong. We got some thing to improve on."
Jefferson made 10-of-13 shots, including both his 3-point attempts, and 9-of-9 free throws.
"My shooting has improved a little this year and I just got hot," he said. "My teammates did a great job of getting me the ball and I was hitting shot after shot, so I figured I would keep shooting."
"He did a lot of great things," Scott said. "He didn't take any bad shots tonight. He took everything in the flow of the game, everything in rhythm."
Martin made 12-of-18 shots and Kerry Kittles was 6-of-8 as New Jersey shot a season-high 55 percent (38-of-69).
New Jersey had a 55-49 lead less than two minutes into the third quarter before pulling away with a 20-6 run. Jefferson and Martin scored eight points apiece and Jason Kidd had four assists during the burst, which gave the Nets a 75-55 cushion with 5:19 to go.
"It is hard to beat us when Jason Kidd is going up and down the court and Richard and Kerry are knocking down shots," Martin said. "When we both gave it going, we are tough to beat."
Kidd threw a pair of alley-oop dunks to Martin 47 seconds apart early in the period and capped the decisive stretch with a pair of free throws. New Jersey made 12-of-19 shots in the third quarter and scored 11 of its 31 points on the fast break.
Kidd fell just shy of his league-leading fifth triple-double of the season with 14 points, 10 assists and eight rebounds.
Ronald Murray scored 27 points to lead the SuperSonics, who have lost three straight, including the first two of a four-game road trip. Seattle scored the final 18 points and still lost by double digits.
"We're searching right now," Seattle coach Nate McMillan said. "Right now we're struggling and not playing well. The confidence of our group right now is down. It's a young group searching for an identity."
