Articles for the Mavs/Spurs game.

[Murphy3]

Dirk's 30 leads Mavs past Spurs in West showdown


SAN ANTONIO (AP) -- Dirk Nowitzki's big second half moved the Dallas Mavericks closer to first place in the Western Conference.

Nowitzki scored 19 of his 30 points in the second half to lead the Mavericks over the Spurs 92-86 in a showdown of the top two teams in the Western Conference on Friday night.

"Obviously, the difference in the game was Dirk," Spurs coach Gregg Popovich said. "He put on an MVP performance. We just couldn't stop him. He took it away."

The Mavericks (57-19) cut the Spurs' lead to one game in the Southwest Division with both teams having six games left to play.

At stake is the top seed in the Western Conference with the team that finishes second getting the No. 4 seed.

"No question, this was a big win for us," Dallas coach Avery Johnson said. "I thought we showed a lot of mental toughness."

Nowitzki started the game shooting 2-for-9. But he went 7-for-10 during an 18-minute stretch that saw the Mavericks erase an 11-point deficit midway through the second quarter and build a 6-point lead starting the fourth quarter.

"They did a good job on him early, but as the game went on we found ways to get him some shots," Mavericks guard Jerry Stackhouse said. "Josh Howard kept us afloat and then Dirk was huge in the second half and down the stretch."

Howard scored 20 of his 22 points in the first half for the Mavericks.

The Mavericks and Spurs split the season series, which is the first tiebreaker.

Dallas has a half-game lead in the second tiebreaker, which is won-loss record in the Southwest Division.

If it goes to a third tiebreaker, San Antonio has 2½-game lead in won-loss record in the West.

Manu Ginobili led San Antonio (58-18) with 22 points.

The Mavericks limited Tim Duncan and Tony Parker, the Spurs' top scorers, to a combined 10-for-30 shooting. Duncan scored 13 points in 38 minutes and Parker had 10 points and three assists in 31 minutes.

"The looks were there," Duncan said. "Tony (Parker) and I both had an off night, and they capitalized."

Dallas shot 51 percent from the field and held San Antonio to just 38 percent shooting.

"Whenever you allow a team like Dallas to shoot more than 50 percent, things aren't good for you," said Spurs forward Bruce Bowen, who had the assignment guarding Nowitzki.

Dallas jumped out to a 63-59 lead 5:52 into the second half. Nowitzki scored 12 points in the third quarter, going 5-for-6 from the field and added two free throws.

The Mavericks led 71-65 at the end of the third quarter. The teams traded baskets for most of the fourth quarter with the Spurs cutting the lead to three when Parker scored on a drive with 1:42 left in the game. But the Mavericks kept the Spurs scoreless the rest of the way when Ginobili and Bowen missed shots and Duncan was called for traveling.

Just as they had in their previous meeting 36 days earlier when the Mavericks pulled out to a quick lead, Dallas gained an early advantage again when Howard scored 15 points on 6-for-9 shooting in the first quarter.

With Howard on the bench for the opening 6:39 of the second quarter and Nowitzki struggling with his shot -- he missed 7 of 9 shots to start the game -- San Antonio went on a 14-2 run to built an 11-point lead.

Game notes
Spurs forward Robert Horry, who scored 12 points in 18 minutes in the previous meeting between the teams, missed Friday's game due to a death in the family. ... San Antonio also missed a chance to cut into Detroit's lead for the best record in the league. The Pistons lost 89-87 at Orlando on Friday, which keeps them three games ahead of San Antonio for the top record.

[grndmstr_c]

Time for a new sig.

[Murphy3]

My exact thoughts.

I know Pop whines too much to officials, but he kicks some serious ass.... as does Jeff Van Gundy.

[Murphy3]

I don't know where this came from. Someone posted it on a competing Mavs board that I will not mention.

SAN ANTONIO -- With 35 seconds remaining in a tightly contested first half, Josh Howard was whistled for a technical foul, as it appeared he flung Manu Ginobili to the floor. Of course, with Ginobili, you can never really believe what you're seeing.

"What do you want us to do," screams out a furious Avery Johnson. "He flops!"

Jason Terry can dunk. That's clear. But he needs to let go of the rim, too.
Technical foul. There were four in the final 1:14 of the opening half. One on each coach. One on an incredulous Howard for the aforementioned incident. And one on Ginobili for trying to tattle on Jason Terry for hanging on to the rim too long following a dunk.

Terry, who had long turned his attention away from the argument and was walking away from the refs, had the biggest smile on his face you're ever going to see. Yep, this Western Conference semifinals series is gonna be a blast..

One thing that should be vastly different the next time these two teams meet will be that the current disparity in depth should be gone. The Mavericks had one bench point in the opening half; San Antonio, 25. Because Marquis Daniels picked up three quick fouls, Johnson essentially went solely with his starters, peppering in Erick Dampier and D-League import Josh Powell.

"We're asking them to do a lot right now," Johnson said of his starters. "Obviously, we're missing three big pieces, but what can you do? We just have to keep going. We came in and got a win against the team to beat in the entire NBA."

Nowitzki took over the game in the second half, despite the fact that San Antonio was running bodies at him. Bruce Bowen, Tim Duncan, Finley, Oberto, they all took their turns and made their presence noticed on switches and double-teams. It didn't matter. Nowitzki simply rose to an MVP-type level and got the job done.

"He made all the shots down the stretch and made some great moves," said Duncan. "His play down the stretch was the difference."

Duncan's was too. He had a horrendous game. It happens. The reigning Finals MVP was off with his shot, clanking his typically reliable bank shots. He finished 5-for-15 from the field, scoring just 13. In the final minute, with the Spurs still clinging to hopes of a rally, he traveled.

Banking on Duncan to have a miserable night is typically a losing proposition, which is why it's hard to put too much stock into anything that went down without being constantly reminded that these two are going to be seeing a lot of one another over the next month or so. Yes, each have to take care of the formality of winning their first round series, but once that transpires, both had better strap in for a seven-game brawl.

[Mavdog]

Mavs deal Spurs back-to-back home setbacks

Web Posted: 04/08/2006 12:18 AM CDT
Johnny Ludden
Express-News Staff Writer

Tim Duncan spiked his towel into the scorer's table, Manu Ginobili grimaced with every step, and Tony Parker looked to the rafters and let out a long sigh.

On Friday night, the Spurs felt what so many teams visiting the AT&T Center the past few years have felt. Frustrated. Bruised. Tired.

Facing a defense that, at least on this night, was every bit as formidable as their own and an MVP-worthy forward, the Spurs wilted just long enough to allow Dallas to take a 92-86 victory and vault itself back into the thick of the Western Conference race.

With Dirk Nowitzki scoring 30 points and neither Duncan nor Parker able to find his stroke, the Spurs slipped off their floor clinging to a single-game lead over the Mavericks. The loss, coupled with Wednesday's against Sacramento, marked the first time they have dropped consecutive home games since January 2004.

"It's a situation you obviously don't want to be in, but those two games are gone," Duncan said. "Our concern now is these next two games. They're going to be big for us. We have to shift our focus to that."

The Spurs play host to Memphis on Sunday, a division game that becomes all the more important after the Mavericks evened the season series at two games apiece.

Should the Spurs and Dallas finish the season tied, the West's top seed would be determined first by division record then by conference record. The Mavericks are 12-3 in the Southwest Division and play their final division game tonight against New Orleans. The Spurs are 11-3 with games against the Grizzlies and Houston (April 19) remaining.

The Spurs have a 37-10 conference record to the Mavericks' 34-12.

"We worked all year for this position," Bruce Bowen said, "so you go from there."

Nowitzki made sure the Mavericks will continue to nip on the Spurs' heels. Nineteen of his points came in the second half when he made 7 of 11 shots.

"Obviously, the difference in the game was Dirk putting on an MVP performance," Spurs coach Gregg Popovich said. "We just couldn't stop him."

Dallas, meanwhile, had a much easier time containing Duncan and Parker, each of whom made 5 of 15 shots. The Spurs shot 37.8 percent as a team and scored only 12 points in the third quarter when the Mavericks took control.

Weakened by a stomach virus for much of the past week, Duncan felt better Friday. He couldn't say the same for his shot. He missed his first five attempts, never settled into a rhythm and committed a costly traveling violation with 40.2 seconds left after the Spurs had closed within four.

"More than anything, I put the onus on myself," said Duncan, who finished with 13 points and nine rebounds. "I had shots I could make. If I make a shot or two, I can loosen the defense a little bit and all of a sudden things can change.

"I just couldn't get that shot to go down early on and it made the rest of the game really tough."

Parker struggled just as much. After averaging better than 25 points in the first three games against Dallas, he finished with 10.

"All night long, I just had a bad rhythm," Parker said. "In the first half, I was going too fast and got a couple of turnovers. In the second half, I kind of shut it down a little bit."

Nowitzki, meanwhile, was only warming up. He made 4 of his 13 shots in the first half, but a lot of that time was spent with Bowen guarding him. In the second half, Duncan spent more time on Nowitzki to allow Bowen to defend Josh Howard, who lit up the Spurs for 20 points in the first two quarters.

The Mavericks' pick-and-rolls often allowed Nowitzki to switch onto a smaller defender. When the Spurs brought a double team, he passed over the top to an open shooter.

After the Spurs drew within 85-82 with 2:43 left, Nowitzki buried back-to-back 11-foot fadeaway jumpers.

"At 7 feet, there's a lot of guys he can just shoot over," Michael Finley said. "He's been making a living doing that."

Ginobili was the only Spurs starter to play well. He scored 22 points, but spent the final four minutes limping noticeably after bruising both his left calf and left shin. His status for Sunday's game is unknown.

In the meantime, the Spurs will try to plow forward with both they and the Mavericks knowing they might not have seen the last of each other.

"Whatever happens, happens," Howard said, "because we know in the playoffs, somewhere down the road, we are going to end up facing this team."

[mary]

Nowitzki plays like an MVP

Web Posted: 04/08/2006 12:18 AM CDT
Mike Finger
Express-News Staff Writer

As if Dirk Nowitzki wasn't already painfully familiar with his Southwest Division rivals before, he spent much of Friday night at the AT&T Center getting to know each of the Spurs on a one-by-one — and often, two-by-two — basis.

There was plenty of time spent with Bruce Bowen, who as usual, tried to be as much of a nuisance as possible. Then there were a few minutes with Nazr Mohammed, a couple of possessions with Fabricio Oberto and Michael Finley, and the bulk of the second half with Tim Duncan.

And after they all had their turn at harassing the Dallas Mavericks' star forward? All Nowitzki had to show for it was 30 points, 10 rebounds, a crucial 92-86 victory over the Spurs and some newfound legitimacy to his campaign for Most Valuable Player.

"They were doing some funky things to him," Mavericks guard Jerry Stackhouse said of the Spurs' variety of double-teams and defensive looks. "But he took advantage of it."

After being held to 10-for-28 shooting in Dallas' previous two losses to the Spurs and making only 4 of 13 shots in the first half Friday, Nowitzki came out firing in the second half.

He swished jumpers — one over Duncan and one over Bowen — on each of the Mavericks' first two third-quarter possessions and went on to hit seven of his last 10 shots. With less than 2:30 remaining, he scored baskets on back-to-back trips to help put the game away for Dallas, which pulled within a game of the Spurs for the division and conference lead.

"More than anything, I had to settle down," Nowitzki said. "I was able to find my rhythm pretty quick there (in the second half)."

Nowitzki, who was coming off a 29-point effort against Sacramento defensive stopper Ron Artest, hit his second-half surge despite the Spurs making an almost endless string of defensive adjustments designed to stop him.

Bowen was on him for most of the first half and at the end of the fourth quarter, but Duncan defended Nowitzki for most of the second half — either by design or as a result of pick-and-roll switches.

And afterwards, some of his teammates were already acting like voting for the league's biggest individual honor should be closed.

"Thank God for the MVP," Dallas guard Jason Terry said. "That says a lot about your leader when he gets challenged and keeps answering the call. That's what he did."

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