Earl K. Sneed, Mavs.com (04/01/10)
Mavs seek magical fourth straight W
Orlando Magic (52-22) at Dallas Mavericks (50-25)
The Dallas Mavericks never fail to amaze.
With all odds against them, the Mavericks overcame a double-digit deficit with less than five minutes of game action remaining in the fourth quarter on the road against the Memphis Grizzlies on Wednesday night. Eventually the Mavs captured a 106-102 overtime victory, ending a three-game losing streak in FedExForum.
"This team doesn't have any quit in us," center Brendan Haywood said after the win. "We aren't going to give in. As long as we have a shot, we are going to continue to fight and play hard."
The win made the Mavericks just the fourth franchise ever and only the third since 1967, when NBA teams began playing 82-game regular seasons, to capture 50 wins in 10 consecutive seasons.
"(The decade of 50-win seasons) is a tribute to ownership -- the commitment that Mark Cuban has made to have good players, create a good environment and get a full building...It's very meaningful from that standpoint," Mavs coach Rick Carlisle said. "You have to have guys that get it done on the floor. Not only playing, being able to finish games and deal with nights like (Wednesday night)."
Carlisle was speaking of players like Dirk Nowitzki.
Though No. 41 connected on just three of 11 shots in the first three quarters, the sharpshooter kept firing. The result was three clutch 3-pointers down the stretch, 28 points on 9-of-23 shooting and a victory for his team.
(Photo by Glenn James/NBAE via Getty Images)
"As a shooter, all you need is to see one go through. Sometimes it might be a free throw. Sometimes it might be a layup that gets you going. I was just happy that one went through and that I stuck with it. My teammates always support me and tell me to keep shooting. Obviously, I needed to step up and be there for my teammates," Nowitzki said.
"Dirk hit a lot of big shots down the stretch. He brought us home," Haywood added.
Now, after rookie Rodrigue Beaubois' 40-point game against Golden State, Nowitzki's second career triple-double against Denver and the instant classic comeback against Memphis, the Mavericks return to the place where they make amazing things happen. The squad will host the defending Eastern Conference champion Orlando Magic Thursday night at the American Airlines Center.
With the quick turnaround, the Mavs will rely heavily on what they learned in a 95-85 road win in Orlando on Feb 19, in the only regular season meeting between the two squads this season.
In that game, the Mavericks learned that their bigs can not get into early foul trouble against All-Star center Dwight Howard. Quick fouls on Haywood had the 7-footer sidelined early on in the previous matchup, helping Howard to a 13-point, 8-rebound first half."When you have a guy 7-1 out there, it's going to change the geometry of the game, defensively. Guys are going to go in there, they're going to have to change their shots, they're going to see length and long arms up over the rim...(Haywood's) foul trouble is what got him out of the game early," Carlisle said.
"Dwight was just killing there in the first half," Nowitzki said. "He got whatever he wanted. He got to the basket, he got some dunks, he got right shoulder, left shoulder jump hooks. So, we wanted in the second half to just mix it up...We did a decent job of mixing it up on him."
While Howard did finish with a game-high 29 points, the Mavericks took away the Magic's perimeter shooting. That was lesson No. 2. In addition to holding Orlando to 41 percent shooting for the game, the Dallas defense also forced the Magic into 4-of-25 from 3-point range.
"Howard had a big night scoring, but they weren't able to get going from the 3-point line," the coach added. "We did a little bit of double-teaming, but for the most part, Brendan played him straight up (in the second half). It allows you to stay closer to the 3-point shooters, so it was a big key."
"Where they get you is with their 3-point shot. I thought we really stuck with their shooters," Nowitzki echoed.
Now the Mavericks look for a repeat performance, while also seeking their fourth straight win. Dallas will be playing in the second half of a back-to-back.
The Magic-Mavericks matchup will air nationally on TNT at 7 p.m. CT. Tickets are still available and can be purchased by calling (214) 747-MAVS.
For up to the minute news on the Dallas Mavericks, visit Mavs.com. Follow Earl K. Sneed on Twitter at http://twitter.com/EarlKSneed.
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