CLEVELAND – Kris Humphries was in the locker room talking to his teammates and said nothing ever comes easy for the Nets.

He’s right.

The Nets were shorthanded, missing Deron Williams and then lost backup Sundiata Gaines in the first quarter with a hip injury and nearly lost the game to the NBA’s worst team, the Cavaliers, who were without arguably their three best players.

But the Nets found a way to outlast Cleveland, winning 98-94 in overtime in an ugly game that wound up being very rewarding for New Jersey.

“Hump was just saying nothing comes easy for us,” Brook Lopez said. “It makes it that much better. We’re definitely working for everyone one of these.”

This was the Nets’ ninth game that went to at least one overtime – remember they also have played two three-OT games. And it was their fourth overtime game in their last 11.

The Nets definitely worked and worked overtime to get this win that ended their four-game losing streak. They got big games from many players, led by Humphries’ ridiculous performance.

He finished with 18 points, a career-best 23 rebounds, four assists, two blocks and two steals. Afterward, he was so tired he thought the Nets won in double overtime.

Lopez and Sasha Vajucic each had 18 and Travis Outlaw played big off the bench with 17 points and six rebounds.

It probably shouldn’t have been as difficult as it turned out being because the Cavaliers are not known for their defense and certainly not known for winning anymore. But the Nets had trouble converting all game long.

They shot 32-for-94 (34 percent), and went nearly three minutes in the fourth period without a basket, But they converted when they absolutely had to convert.

Lopez got a shot off in the lane that missed, but he tapped it in with 4.3 seconds left in regulation to help force the overtime.

“Brook getting us to overtime – that was a big time move that he made,” Nets coach Avery Johnson said. “Our guys battled. They showed a lot of guts. We didn’t have anything going offensively, shot another low percentage from the field. But we battled. I thought, if we could get it into overtime, because we’ve had two triple overtime games this year, maybe we’d have a chance to win.”

The way the game was going it wouldn’t have been surprising if Lopez missed his tip or if he would have been called for an over-the-back loose-ball foul. Lopez was whistled for a couple of fouls that didn’t appear to be fouls on him.

In the overtime, the best thing the Nets did was hit two of their first three shots. They got an 87-84 lead that they never relinquished, despite not making another field goal.

“It was a grind,” Humphries said. “We just stuck with it.”

The Nets got their points from the foul line in the extra session. They were 11-for-14, including 8-for-8 in the final minute. Jordan Farmar made all four of his in that time, including two with 3.8 to make sure the Nets didn’t give the Cavaliers a chance.

“I had to step up and do something to help the team win,” said Farmar, who shot 2-for-10 from the field. “I definitely didn’t want to let this one slip away based on my performance. Everybody was fighting and clawing and trying to make some things happen, so I wanted to do something to help.”

The Nets needed everyone on this night to make sure they didn’t lose to the Cavaliers and didn’t extend their losing streak. They made it more difficult on themselves, but they left the arena feeling extra tired yet satisfied.

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Follow me on Twitter: @Al_Iannazzone

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Al Iannazzone covers the Nets for The Record (Bergen County, N.J.)