For much of this season, any fleeting success the Nets found came at the offensive end. But their best form of the season has come over the past two weeks, and it’s come riding the best defense in the league.

With their 97-89 win Monday night over the Hornets, a fellow lottery aspirant, the Nets have won five of six and suddenly are playing withering defense, with coach Jordi Fernandez’s teachings seeming to have finally taken hold.

The Nets held the Hornets to 89 points, after smothering Miami to 86 on Friday. It marked the first time they’d held consecutive opponents under 90 points in over a decade (Dec. 2014).

“The consistency, the work the coaches put together with finding what our priorities are,” Fernandez said before the game. “The 3-point line was an issue, and our pick-and-rolls were very inconsistent. So finding time and ways to get that work done, and then getting the reps.