The Nets’ first half wasn’t just horrific; it was historic.
Brooklyn got hammered 121-92 by Oklahoma City on Wednesday night before a sellout crowd of 17,548 at Barclays Center, putting forth one of the sorriest halves of basketball in franchise annals.
Brooklyn trailed the Thunder 60-24 at the break, its lowest-scoring first half in franchise history.
The Nets were just two points away from tying the worst half by any NBA team in the shot-clock era, the 22 by Phoenix in 2016.
“Obviously you feel embarrassed when you score 24 points in a half of basketball,” said Jordi Fernández. “And I do believe, no doubt in my mind, our guys are better than this. But it’s not about what I believe; it’s about going out there and doing it.”
The makeshift Nets — who played without Michael Porter Jr., Egor Dëmin and Day’Ron Sharpe, and lost Noah Clowney to injury — shot just 23.7 percent in the first half, and 1-for-16 from deep.
Brooklyn had 15 turnovers for 22 Thunder points. It trailed by as much as 42 in a rout that was as much about being unprepared as undermanned.
“Yeah, our readiness to play the game was not there,” said Fernández. “I expect our guys to play every minute like it’s the hardest minute you’ll play in your life, and it didn’t happen. And some of the guys coming off the bench, they did it.
“It’s not magic or rocket science. It’s just control what you can control, your attitude and your energy and good things happen in this game.”
The Nets (17-52) are the first team in the league this season to be held under 100 points in four straight games. They’ve lost five in a row and 15 of 17.
Brooklyn is third in the lottery standings, 2 ½ games behind Indiana and pulling within a half-game of idle second-place Washington.
Jalen Wilson had a team-high 15 points off the bench, while Nolan Traore added 13 and six assists.
OKC star Shai Gilgeous-Alexander cracked the 20-point barrier for the 130th straight game, while Jared McCain led the Thunder with a game-high 26 off the bench.
Noah Clowney was forced out of the game after just 7:57 with a right wrist injury, but told The Post he wasn’t seriously hurt and should be fine.
“Yeah, we have to take a look and see what’s there, and obviously prioritize his body and his health,” Fernández said. “That’s the most important thing, especially now with 13 games to go. And hopefully he’s fine.”
Porter missed a fourth straight game with a sprained ankle, but now has “left hamstring awareness” added to his injury designation.
“He’d just done form shooting the previous time, and [Tuesday] throughout the workout, his ankle was feeling better,” said Fernández. “He just felt his hamstring, and we’ve got to make sure we look at it and have a plan.”
Ben Saraf was out with a sore left foot.
Jalen Williams, Luguentz Dort and Isaiah Hartenstein were out for OKC.
