Earl K. Sneed, Mavs.com
Memphis Grizzles 101 at Dallas Mavericks 106
The Dallas Mavericks came into the last matchup of a four-game home stand looking to avenge a 98-82 road loss to the Memphis Grizzlies on Dec. 4.
After losing the last three meetings to the Grizzlies, the Mavericks entered Saturday afternoon's game looking for balanced scoring and improved shooting numbers at home, where the Mavs have struggled at times early this season. With a season-best seven players scoring in double figures while shooting 52 percent, the Mavericks got back on the winning track and downed the divisional foe Grizzlies, 106-101.
"Our balance was very good tonight," Mavs coach Rick Carlisle said after the win. "We had very good balance down the stretch as well. Different guys involved, different guys scoring, different guys making plays...That's a positive."
Dallas got a major boost in their effort to tie the season series with Memphis when point guard Jason Kidd got the start, despite battling soreness after falling hard in the closing seconds of an 85-81 loss to Portland on Tuesday night. But the Mavs were without one of their most reliable reserves, as forward Drew Gooden didn't dress after experiencing back spasms.
"I found out (Gooden would be out) after I turned in the active list, because it appeared that he was going to be okay. And then it got tighter as we approached game time coming out of the meeting," Carlisle said of the injury to Gooden.
(Photo by Glenn James/NBAE via Getty Images)
With Gooden out, the Mavericks needed more scoring in the painted area from everyone. Using an 8-0 run, all of which was in the paint, the Mavericks sprinted out to a 14-8 edge early in the first quarter. But Memphis came storming back, capitalizing on Dallas turnovers and turning the errors into transition offense, as the Grizzlies finished the quarter on an 18-6 run. At the source of Dallas' problems were the 16 first quarter points from Zach Randolph. Leading by as many as nine in the period, the Grizzlies held a 30-24 lead after one while shooting 15-of-27 from the field. Meanwhile, the Mavs hit on 10-of-22 shots at the other end.
"(Randolph) was hitting shots in the first half, and we just tried to give him different looks," center Erick Dampier said. "Any good player is going to make shots, so he's doing what he can to help that team win."
Perhaps more than Gooden's offense, the Mavericks lacked the big man's interior defense. With Randolph and the Grizzlies scoring easily at the rim, the Mavericks found themselves down double digits in the early minutes of the second quarter. Then the Mavericks staged their own comeback effort, ignited by sixth man Jason Terry's play at both ends of the court. With 11 points coming from Terry in the second period, Dallas turned a 10-point deficit to just a 55-53 marginal disadvantage at the halftime break.
"It was good to see the ball go into the basket," Terry said. "I was real aggressive, getting into the paint early, creating, making plays, which loosened it up for me."
After the slow start, the Mavs brought their shooting percentage up to 54 percent at the half, while the Grizzlies hit on 50 percent. Randolph's 21 first half points and Memphis' 36-24 points in the paint edge pushed the Grizzlies to the two-point lead after 24 minutes of play.
"We knew this was an important game. We knew it was not going to be an easy game, for a number of reasons. First of all, (the Grizzlies) are an improving team and Randolph has been playing at a stratospheric level."
In the third quarter, the Mavericks sprung to life with above-the-rim finishes from forward Shawn Marion. Defensively, the Mavs switched to different looks on Randolph and threw multiple double teams his way.
"It was all-out, double-teaming when he caught the ball...We just had to do it. He's just two effective down there. It worked out and our guys did a good job with it," Carlisle said of the strategy.
"I thought defensively tonight, that's where we really got it going in the second half," Terry said.
In the half court offensive sets, Nowitzki handled the scoring load and the Mavericks surged ahead on the scoreboard. In a chippy quarter, the Mavs led by as much as seven before the Grizzlies closed to within 79-77 on a Sam Young dunk as the period expired.
(Photo by Danny Bollinger/NBAE via Getty Images)
Terry and the Mavs' second unit widened the Dallas lead to eight early in the fourth, but O.J. Mayo and Rudy Gay brought Memphis right back to within one with 7:41 remaining in the game. With Nowitzki scoreless in the fourth, Terry and Josh Howard refused to relinquish the lead.
The two swingmen answered an aggressive Memphis squad with timely scoring. Nursing a three-point lead, Terry may have made the play of the game when he intercepted Mayo's outlet pass to stop a transition opportunity for Memphis. Terry then found Howard for a jumper with 29.5 ticks left, as the Mavs led 101-96. After a pair of free throws from Mayo, Terry sunk two game-sealing shots at the charity stripe with 20.6 seconds on the game clock. Dallas then finished the Grizzlies off at the foul line, padding the lead to take the victory. Terry and Howard combined to score 20 of Dallas' 27 points in the final period.
"That's an old habit for us. We're accustom to Josh and I getting it going or Dirk having it going. That just hasn't been there for us this season, but it's something that in the near future is going to be there and it's going to be consistent," Terry said.
"(Terry and Howard) were great," Nowitzki said of his teammates and their play in the fourth. "I didn't really have great looks out there -- (Randolph) was really playing up on me...Josh was coming off on one side and Jet (Terry) was coming off of a down screen on the other. And Kidd was quarterbacking, so that really worked well for us."
Terry led the Mavs with 23 points, while Nowitzki added 20. Erick Dampier recorded a double-double with 13 points and 10 rebounds. Kidd added a double-double of his own, scoring 10 points and dishing out 10 assists. J.J. Barea (11), Howard (11) and Marion (11) gave the Mavericks seven with 10-plus points for the first time since April 4 against Phoenix.
"When you get seven or eight guys playing at a high level, it makes a big difference," Carlisle said.
"This team is going to be something else, when we can get consistent contributions from seven or eight players in double figures," Terry said. "That's the way this team was built."
After his explosive first half the Mavericks found an answer for Randolph, who finished with a game-high 27 points (six in the second half). Gay added 22 and Mayo finished with 18, though the Dallas defense held Memphis to just 44 percent shooting.
Dallas' balanced scoring attack allowed the Mavs to overcome a 49-40 rebounding disadvantage and a 60-44 scoring deficit in the paint. Memphis also outscored Dallas 19-12 in second chance points.
"These guys have to be a league-leader in points in the paint. I don't know where they are rank-wise, but 60 is too many," Carlisle said.
"We're a lot better defensive team than that," Dampier said. "We know that we have to do it each and every night. We can't overlook teams like Memphis...We gave up a lot of rebounds, so we have to play together and gang rebound."
Dallas now heads to the thin air and steep altitude of Denver to play the Nuggets on the second night of a back-to-back. Denver ended Dallas' season last year, taking the Western Conference Semifinals series in five games. It is the start of four games away from home.
"When you have some recent history with a team in a playoff, there's a familiarity. They're familiar with us, we're familiar with them. It makes it that much more competitive usually," Carlisle said.
The Mavericks-Nuggets matchup will air locally on Fox Sports Southwest at 7:00 p.m. CT.
The team returns to the American Airlines Center on Jan. 5 to host the Detroit Pistons. That game will air locally on Fox Sports Southwest at 7:30 p.m. CT. Tickets are still available and can be purchased by calling (214) 747-MAVS.
The Mavericks and the NBA have introduced the official NBA All-Star game ballot, featuring Dirk Nowitzki, Jason Kidd, Josh Howard, Shawn Marion and Jason Terry. For more on how to vote for your favorite Mavs for the All-Star game, to be held at Cowboys Stadium in Arlington, Texas, visit Mavs.com.
Follow Mavs.com’s Earl K. Sneed on Twitter at http://twitter.com/EarlKSneed.
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