As the clock wound down to the final seconds of the second quarter Thursday night, the fans inside Barclays Center rose to their feet in anticipation while Deron Williams dribbled the ball against Chris Paul at the top of the key.

Suddenly, Williams broke off a picture-perfect crossover and was gone, flying past Paul into the heart of the Clippers defense. He flipped the ball over the outstretched arms of Blake Griffin onto the rim and watched it roll into the basket, sending the sellout crowd into a frenzy.

This was the Deron Williams the Nets have been waiting for, the player who can change a game like few others in the NBA and one who showed he still exists as he led the Nets to a 102-93 triumph overhis second straight game off the bench for the first time in his career — clawed their way back into the game. They tied it for the first time since the opening tip on a Pierce 3-pointer early in the third, before an Andray Blatche bucket in the post gave the Nets their first lead of the game at 33-31, and they wound up never trailing again.

“That second group did a great job,” Williams said. “We dug ourselves a hole, that first group. We really didn’t get going and then they came in and were able to get it back to five at the quarter, and then we had a good second quarter and we closed out the half really well.”

But the difference for the Nets the past