BRIAN MAHONEY
AP Basketball Writer

NEW YORK (AP) — Paul Pierce called the Miami Heat a juggernaut. He insisted they are still the team to beat.

So yes, the Brooklyn Nets have plenty of respect for the two-time defending NBA champions — and no fear.

Pierce made that clear again Sunday, a day after the Nets’ Game 3 rout that cut Miami’s lead to 2-1 in the Eastern Conference semifinals. Brooklyn will try to even the series at home Monday night.

Pierce says that he tries to give his teammates the “belief that we can beat this team. They’re not unbeatable.”

Miami had been in this postseason until Brooklyn’s 104-90 victory Saturday. Pierce said after the game that the Nets wanted to show the Heat that they weren’t scared of them.

Heat coach Erik Spoelstra says “the defeat was complete.”

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