Washington Wizards 102 at Dallas Mavericks 91
Poor shooting and lackluster defense are always the ingredients to losing basketball. The Dallas Mavericks' cold-shooting and lack of defensive execution proved to be the recipe to a loss in the team's season opener Tuesday night against the Washington Wizards.
Despite a 34-point night from Dirk Nowitzki, the Mavericks shot under 40 percent and failed in their efforts to slow down Wizards' star Gilbert Arenas, eventually falling 102-91 on Dallas' home floor.
(Photo by Ronald Martinez/Getty Images)
Nowitzki and Arenas battled in Dallas' 102-91 loss
"Washington played a very intelligent game, they played well and you know, it is disappointing," Mavs coach Rick Carlisle said. "This is one of those nights when we are not shooting well and you have to hang in the game with your defense and we just weren’t able to do it."
The Mavericks came out of the gates with a sense of urgency early as the season commenced.
Starting a lineup of Jason Kidd, Quinton Ross, Shawn Marion, Nowitzki and Erick Dampier the Mavs found themselves in a dogfight early. After Marion welcomed the home crowd with a personal address, he then welcomed them with his play. Ross got the Mavs on the scoreboard first with a fadeaway jumper, tying the game at 2-all, then Nowitzki and Marion took control, lifting the Mavericks to a 13-7 lead midway through the opening period.
The Wizards didn't go away quietly, storming back behind three consecutive dunks from Brendan Haywood. Arenas' jumper with 3:26 remaining in the quarter tied the game at 15-15.
After Washington briefly went ahead, Nowitzki brought Dallas even at the foul line to close the quarter with both teams knotted at 21-21. Nowitzki and Marion combined for 15 of the Mavs' 21 points in the first. Dallas connected on just 6-of-16 shots in the period.
The athletic frontline for the Wizards gave the Mavericks trouble early in the second quarter. Consecutive three-point plays from Andray Blatche gave Washington a 32-27 lead.
"You know Blatche hurt us in the exhibition game we played against them and he played well last year. You know, those guys just make shots. In talking about their team, we didn’t want to let him get going. He was able to hit his first shot and when he is able to hit his first shot, he is always tough," Carlisle said.
The Mavs answered with their own spark plug, J.J. Barea, who cut the lead to one (32-31) with a driving finger-roll score with 8:57 remaining in the half.
Once the Wizards pushed their lead to six, Barea continued to keep the Mavs close with a 3-pointer and a transition feed to Dampier for a dunk, but Washington clinched on to a 41-40 advantage midway through the second period.
"We need to come off the bench with energy and we didn't today," Barea said. "I think we need to come out with more passion and play like we do in practice. We've practiced harder than we played tonight in the game."
Once again the Wizards responded, this time with an 11-3 run concluding with back-to-back jumpers from Arenas to give Washington a 52-43 lead and prompting Carlisle to take a timeout with 3:07 left in the half.
"We were a little stagnant out there at times and a little confused on what to do and what not to do. It showed," Marion said.
After the Mavericks trimmed a Washington 12-point lead to six, both the Wizards and Arenas thought the sharpshooter's 3-pointer at the buzzer gave the Wizards a 59-50 lead heading into the halftime break. The shot was reviewed and waived off, giving Washington just a six-point edge heading into the second half.
"We were fortunate to get into halftime only down six and then we needed to make a stand in the second half and we never really were able to sustain anything long term," Carlisle said.
Nowitzki and his 18 first half points (on 3-of-12 from the floor) kept the Mavs close, though the Mavs shot just under 43 percent in the first 24 minutes of play. Meanwhile, Washington shot near 53 percent, led by Arenas' 15 points in the half.
Dallas looked for instant offense in the second half, starting Terry in place of Ross to start the third quarter. Even with Terry playing next to the starters, the Mavericks couldn't combat the potent Washington offense. The Wizards held a 67-60 lead when Carlisle called a timeout with 6:19 left in the quarter to adjust to Washington's two point guard lineup, with Arenas and Randy Foye playing alongside each other.
Once again Carlisle came back with Barea, who knocked down a jumper and then drew an offensive foul on consecutive possession to bring the Mavs to within four (69-65). It was quickly answered at the other end by Arenas' three-point play.
With the Mavs down eight, Nowitzki came alive late in the third quarter. No. 41's 3-pointer off a Terry feed pulled the Mavericks to within three (77-74) with 36.7 seconds left in the third. The quarter ended with Dallas down by that same margin.
The Mavericks started the fourth quarter cold, and Washington capitalized by taking an 85-77 lead on a Fabricio Oberto hook shot with 6:59 remaining in the game. The lead quickly grew to 10 on an Arenas scoop and score, but Nowitzki's 3-pointer kept Dallas in contention.
"It seemed like we tried to battle in the second half, but every time we'd try to make a little run they'd make a big shot, Nowitzki said. "You have to give them a lot of credit."
As Nowitzki and the Mavs continued to claw at the deficit, the Wizards continued to find the bottom of the net. Arenas' jumper with 4:00 remaining gave Washington a 94-84 advantage, leading Carlisle to put in his best perimeter shooters.
With the Mavericks down nine, Nowitzki's missed lay-in and Butler's fadeaway in the lane with 37.9 seconds left put the finishing touches on the Wizards' win and sent the Mavericks into their home locker room with their first defeat of the season. Washington outscored Dallas 25-17 in the final period.
Washington out-shot Dallas on the night 46 to 39 percent, while winning the rebounding edge 46-42. Dallas struggled from the three-point arch, going 4-of-18 from long range.
"We had a bad shooting night and that's going to happen, but I know that's going to come. We just need to play harder," Barea said.
"Sometimes the offense just can't get anything going, and it seemed like nobody really had a decent night," Nowitzki said. "It was the kind of night that we just have to find a way to win, especially at home. That's what the great teams do. Those are the kind of games that the good teams find a way to win and we didn't."
Nowitzki added a team-high nine rebounds to his 34-point night. Marion added 16 points, while Barea and Terry combined for 25 points off the Mavericks' bench.
Arenas led the Wizards with 29 points, while Blatche poured in 20 off of Washington's sideline.
"We were double-teaming him (Arenas) most of the game and he is one of those guys that is able to keep his dribble alive and create contact and you know, he made a lot of great plays," Carlisle said. "We obviously didn’t do as good of a job as we wanted to do, but look, he’s the kind of guy that can easily go for 30 or 40 points and her had 29 and he played a great game for them."
The Mavs return to action Friday when the team plays back-to-back games in Los Angeles. First Dallas meets Kobe Bryant and the defending champion L.A. Lakers on Friday night, with the game airing locally on KTXA 21 and KTXA 21 HD and nationally on ESPN at 9:30 p.m. CT.
Dallas then plays the L.A. Clippers on Saturday night, with the game airing locally on KTXA 21 and KTXA 21 HD at 9:30 p.m. CT.
"We have to play better basketball. We have to make more shots and be able to get the ball inside more. Get the ball penetrated more and we are going to be able to have to get stops. It is as simple as that. At this point that is kind of where we are," Carlisle said as the Mavericks move forward in the season.
After the L.A. trip, Dallas returns to the American Airlines Center on Nov. 3 to face off with the Utah Jazz at 7:30 p.m. CT. Tickets remain available. For ticket information call (214) 747-MAVS. The game will air on FSN Southwest.
Dallas has also introduced the “MavsU” program, designed to offer college and university students an opportunity to attend Mavs games at a discounted rate. The Mavericks and Genghis Grill have teamed to offer discounted tickets to students for many upcoming games.
To purchase any MavsU ticket and receive a coupon for a free bowl at Genghis simply call 214-747-MAVS or visit Mavs.com.
Follow Mavs.com’s Earl K. Sneed on Twitter at http://twitter.com/EarlKSneed.
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