Mavs go down, but they're not out
No. 2 Dallas Mavericks 90 at No. 7 San Antonio Spurs 94
There's no doubt that the Dallas Mavericks were able to put out of their minds the haunting memories of a 102-88 home loss in Game 2 of their first round matchup with the San Antonio Spurs. Game 3 will not be so easily erased from the Mavericks' memory bank.With the series knotted at one win apiece as the schedule switched to two games in the AT&T Center, the Mavericks looked to regain the home-court advantage with a win in Game 3. But in a hard-fought contest, the game came down to the team that made the plays in the final minutes. The Mavericks weren't that team, falling 94-90 in a 48-minute war.
"It was a battle tonight," Mavs forward Dirk Nowitzki said after the loss. "We knew they were going to be tough to beat at home and they have been a tough home team over the year. Both teams were there at the end and they just made some tough plays."
The third meeting didn't start much better than Game 2 for the Mavericks. After the Mavs began the opening quarter by scoring the first four points of the night, the Spurs quickly seized control with a 12-0 run. Not even rookie Rodrigue Beaubois' first appearance in the series was enough to boost the stagnant Dallas squad, as a cold-shooting first quarter by the Mavericks left them down 23-16 after one.
A 7-for-19 shooting quarter and six turnovers definitely contributed to Dallas' early deficit. Meanwhile, the Spurs swished in 10 of 18 shots.
"Some of the shots we got were difficult. Some of the shots they got were difficult," Mavs coach Rick Carlisle said.
"It's not great always having to battle back...I thought when we were down seven points early we battled," Nowitzki said. "But we still would like to start better. We came out of the gate with three or four turnovers."
Though Spurs guard Tony Parker terrorized the Dallas defense, the Mavericks rallied in the second quarter with an attacking offense led by Nowitzki. But after a brief spurt by the Mavs, Tim Duncan and the Spurs responded with a flurry of their own. Still, with a late surge by Mav reserve guards J.J. Barea and Jason Terry, the Mavericks entered the halftime break down just 47-44.
Duncan's 16 first-half points and Parker's 12 on a combined 12-of-21 shooting, helped the Spurs connect on 48 percent on their shots at the midway point. Nowitzki led Dallas with 13 points, as the Mavs shot 46 percent through the half.
"For the most part, you're not going to keep Dirk from scoring. But we made it tough on him," Spurs coach Gregg Popovich said.
Barea's offensive execution earned the 6-foot spark plug a start to begin the third quarter, as starting swingman Caron Butler began the second half on the bench.
"Just going with a group that was going good. We needed penetration," Carlisle said when explaining the decision. "(Barea) made good things happen. Offensively and defensively, he was active. He helped us when he was out there."
"He can penetrate, score or get the ball to someone for a three. He was really good tonight," Popovich said of Barea's play.
Meanwhile, an accidental elbow from Nowitzki connected with Manu Ginobili's face, sending the versatile star to the locker room with a bloody nose.
"It's a very physical series, there's a lot of contact going on," Carlisle said.
As Barea locked up Parker on the defensive end, Nowitzki handled the scoring duties. But the Mavs still couldn't find an answer for Duncan, as the future Hall of Famer dominated the paint. That is until the trio of Nowitzki, Barea and Terry sparked a 19-2 run. Led by Nowitzki's 16-point quarter, the Mavs outscored the Spurs 26-17 in the period to take a 70-66 lead into the final 12 minutes of play.
"I think we showed in the third quarter that we need to speed the game up, and our zone defense was effective," Nowitzki said. "We got some stops, and then we were able to speed the game up. J.J. got to the basket and Jason and I had some good looks."
The fourth quarter began with Ginobili back on the floor, leading a scoring burst against Dallas' zone defense, all despite a nasal fracture. But Nowitzki didn't slow down a bit, as the two teams exchanged baskets like championship fighters throwing haymaker after haymaker. That's when Parker began to take over the game with his offensive arsenal.
"We were in zone on a couple of those possessions," Carlisle explained. "And (Parker) just ended up late-clock, you take the guy nearest where you're at and you've got to defend him. He hit a couple of tough, basically one-on-one shots.
"They weren't easy shots and they were contested. But he's the kind of player that can make those plays."
After the Mavericks cut a seven-point Spurs' lead down to just four, Parker's three-point play with just 18.7 seconds on the clock closed the door on a Mavericks' comeback attempt.
"Parker made three jump shots in a row to seal the game. You just have to give them credit, they made big shots down the stretch," Nowitzki said. "We gave it away. Down the stretch, we had too many empty possessions."
The Spurs then sunk clutch free throws to put a cap on the win, taking a 2-1 advantage in the series before hosting Game 4 on Sunday.
Despite a 35-point performance from Nowitzki, in which the 7-footer nailed 13 of 23 shots, the Mavericks still shot just 45 percent compared to the Spurs' 49 percent. Those numbers in no way reflect Dallas' 8-of-20 shooting from three-point range, even after San Antonio missed all seven of their shots from behind the arch.
"I thought our shots were very good. There's going to be a few that you wish were a little bit better. But it's a very intense game, and contested shots are one of the realities of playoff basketball," Carlisle said.
Off the bench, Terry posted 17 points and Barea added 14, giving the Mavs three double-figure scorers.
Meanwhile, Duncan's 25 points to lead the Spurs was followed closely behind by Parker's 23. Despite the injury, Ginobili finished with 15 points, while George Hill posted 17 while continuing to get the start at the point guard spot over Parker.
Though the two teams each snatched down 36 rebounds, the Mavs couldn't overcome 16 total turnovers. San Antonio's 56-38 domination in points in the paint also proved to be too much for the Mavs to withstand.
Now, the Mavericks find themselves down in the best-of-seven series, with an all-important fourth matchup on deck. Game 4 will air nationally on TNT and locally on KTXA and KTXA HD at 6 p.m. CT Sunday evening.
"We battled the whole way. We had some tough calls and turnovers, but we will play again on Sunday and see what happens," Nowitzki concluded.
Then the series swings back up to Dallas for Game 5, which will air locally on KTXA and KTXA HD at a time not yet announced. Reserve your tickets by calling (214) 747-MAVS.
The Mavs-Spurs First Round series schedule is as follows:
Game 3 – Fri April 23 Dallas at San Antonio 8:30PM TXA21/ ESPN
Game 4 – Sun April 25 Dallas at San Antonio 6:00PM TXA21/ TNT
Game 5 * Tue April 27 San Antonio at Dallas TBD TXA21/ TBD
Game 6 * Thu April 29 Dallas at San Antonio TBD TXA21/ TBD
Game 7 * Sat May 1 San Antonio at Dallas TBD TXA21/ TNT
Mavs.com has introduces a new, interactive webcast entitled "Technical Foul," hosted by Mavs television broadcasters Mark Followill and Bob Ortegel. The second live-streamed broadcast will be Monday, April 26 at 12:30 p.m. CT, recapping Game 1 and previewing Game 2 of the series. Earl K. Sneed will also talk with fans and answer questions via a live chat during the show. Tune in for exclusive Mavs talk with the people that know the team the best.
Follow Earl K. Sneed on Twitter at www.twitter.com/EarlKSneed.
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