Mavericks 92, Pistons 88

The game had a playoff atmosphere with a national audience watching and the game itself didn’t disappoint fans. It was two evenly matched teams throwing its best punches knowing that, in the end, only one would be left standing. The Mavs left the court still standing when the pistons couldn’t withstand Dirks 2nd half offensive explosion and the defensive clamp down by the Mavs.

In the 1st half, the Mav’s scored 46 while the pistons had 50. Dirk had scored about 7 points. In the 2nd half, the Mavs returned to who they really are and the defense made a dramatic improvement by holding the pistons to 19 points in both the 3rd and 4th periods. Even without Devean George and Greg Buckner, two of the best defenders, the defense improved. It just meant the starters would have to play longer and better, so they did. Dirk kept on shooting and the shots finally started going in the hoop. He scored 21 of his 28 points in the 2nd half. Jerry Stackhouse, not known for his defense, played well against McDyess and hustled back to the defensive end after scoring. He had 12 points for the games and played longer then usual, 26 minutes. Nowitzki, Howard and Terry all logged 43 or 44 minutes as only 8 players played for the Mavs.

D.Nowitzki - 28 points 12 boards
J.Terry - 12 points 6 boards 6 assists
J.Howard - 12 points 9 boards
E.Dampier - 5 points 5 boards
J.Stackhouse - 12 points 2 boards 2 assists
D.Harris - 22 points 2 boards 3 assists

UP NEXT: Tuesday AT Knicks
===========================
Rockets 124 76ers 74

One has to feel badly for the 76ers. It was terrible. They were totally dominated in every phase of the game as the Rockets looked like world beaters. The 76ers aren’t really this bad and the Rockets aren’t really this good, except for the 1 hour and 59 minutes during this game.

Lets just let the numbers speak for themselves as all 12 guys on the roster got minutes and points in the game. The Rockets shoot 53% from the field.

Y.Ming - 24 points 10 boards
T.McGrady - 21 points 4 boards 8 assists
S.Battier -7 points 3 boards
J.Howard - 11 points 10 boards
L.Head - 13 points 1 board 4 assists
C.Hayes - 12 points 13 boards

UP NEXT: TUESDAY, Pacers

MAVS 92 KNICKS 77

Even though coach Isiah Thomas said he felt “helpless” when it came to playing and beating the Mav’s, his team did show up to play the game and for the 1st half, kept the Mavs lead close by a 46 to 43 score. Of course it helped that the Mavs took off the 2nd period and only scored 16 points. Maybe the Mavs thought the game was over because they had scored 30 in the 1st period.

In the 2nd half, the Mavs did what they do best, they scored more points then their opponents. It is possible when you shoot 53% by hitting 34 of 64 attempts while the Knicks are shooting 36% on 28 of 78 from the field. The rest of the stats don’t seem to matter as much.

Each team had 40 rebounds. Knicks had 9 turnovers to the Mavs 14 and shot free throws at 50% by hitting on 15 of 30 attempts while the Mavs went 21 of 27 for 78%.

The Mav’s take their 2nd game of the road trip with four more road games to go.

D.Nowitzki - 24 points 5 boards
J.Terry - 15 points 3 boards 6 assists
J.Howard - 24 points 10 boards
E.Dampier - 10 points 13 boards
J.Stackhouse - 10 points

UP NEXT: at CAV’S
==================
Rockets 86 Pacers 76

The Rockets take their 4th win in a row and didn’t score 124 points like the last game. In fact they didn’t even need 90 to beat the hapless pacers who have lost 12 of their last 13 games. The had all they needed in Yao Ming and Tracy Mcgrady as Yao scored 32 points while pulling down 14 boards and blocking 2 shots. Of course the old turnover bug bit Yao again as he lost the ball 6 times. That stat is one that will kill a guy in the playoffs. T-mac, as usual took a 100 shots, just kidding, he was 7 of 21 while scoring 20 points, pulling down 9 boards and dishing out 10 assists and barely missing a triple double.

The Pacers are awful and it was a good test for the Rockets mentally who needed to get up for the game and play well. No one else for the Rockets scored in double figures. The Rockets also had a huge rebounding edge with a 53 to 41 effort. It helped too the Pacers only shot 38% from the field while the Rockets were shooting 39%.

The Rockets get a real test in their next game.

UP NEXT: Thursday, Pistons

MAVERICKS 98, CAVALIERS 90

If you expected a big shootout between two high scoring offenses, you may have been disappointed in the game. Neither Lebron, Hughes, Dirk or Jet burned up the nets. Instead you saw a great defensive effort by the Mavs as they slowed the Cavs offensive machine down considerably. Though Lebron got his 31 points, he had to do it by playing 45 minutes, hitting 12 of 28 shots, including going only 1 of 6 from 3 point land. He also had 6 turnovers as the Mavs threw different players and defenses at him.

On offense, the Mavs took turns being the man. While the Cavs defense keyed on Dirk, other guys stepped up the scoring and rebounding. Five Mavs scored in double figures as the Cavs never could really shut the Mavs down. Mavs scored their lowest point total in the 4th period with only 19 but they hit the big free throws when the game was on the line. In fact, the Mavs hit all 17 of their free throw attempts for the game.

D.Nowitzki -23 points 9 boards 6 assists
J.Terry - 21 points 4 boards 5 assists
J.Howard - 7 points 6 boards
E.Dampier - 13 points 9 boards
J.Stackhouse - 10 points 3 boards 6 assists
D.Harris - 17 points 7 boards 6 assists

UP NEXT: Friday AT Celtics
=============================
Spurs 90 Pacers 72

The losing streak is over. OK, it was only 2 games but that counts as a losing streak if you are the Spurs.

The Pacers came out shooting in the 1st period and took a 22 to 17 point lead. Too bad for them the game is 4 periods long. The Spurs came out without their usual edge and sense of urgency and that continues to be an issue for them. Maybe they already have their minds on the playoffs but it isn’t a good habit to have at this point in the season because they end up having to come from behind to win games. As the previous games revealed, the Spurs can’t always come back and win. But the Spurs do have a guy named Duncan and he took matters into his hands so by half time, the Spurs were leading 42 to 37. By that time, the pacers were battling the Spurs and themselves. When Duncan is hitting 5 shots in a row, other pacers don’t need to get ejected from the game.  Tinsley, the start point guard did just that by colliding with Duncan, on a drive to the hoop, and Tinsley took the foul on a “charging” call. He disagreed with the call too loud, too long and he was gone. Things got worse for the pacers as the Spurs offense and defense came alive and left the pacers behind the rest of the game. Brent Barry had an interesting stat line. He hit all 3 shots from the field with 2 3’s and 1 for 1 at the line for a NO MISS shooting night.

T.Duncan -27 points 7 boards 3 assists
T.Parker - 10 points 4 boards 4 assists
M.Ginobili - 8 points 4 boards 5 assists
F.Elson - 14 points 4 boards
B.Barry - 9 points
M.Bonner - 10 points 9 boards

UP NEXT: Friday, Pistons

Rockets 91 Pistons Pistons 85

The Rockets didn’t hesitate to take on the vaunted physical Piston defense. In fact, the Pistons are the ones who looked unprepared for what hit them as they were held to 15 points in the first period while the Rockets were getting their offense going. At half time, the Rockets were up 48 to 35. Yao Ming was plugging up the lane and influencing shots though he hadn’t blocked any. The Pistons were moving the ball a lot but the Rockets defense seemed to have an answer for every move. Both teams were getting a good dose of defense and easy shots were hard to come by.

In the 3rd period, the Rocket lead had ballooned to 20 points and into the 4th, it was still 17. The Rockets must have had started to think the game was over and took their foot off the gas pedal because their offense couldn’t seem to find the basket anymore and the Pistons suddenly seemed to come alive. They hit some 3’s and with Yao taking a breather, they were able to score in the lane. But with about 3 minutes left, the Rockets managed to stop the pistons run. The Rockets were able to score only 5 points but they were big because they held the pistons to 3 points. The pistons had used up all they had digging out of the big hole the Rockets had put them.

Y.Ming - 27 points 7 boards
T.McGrady - 20 points 5 boards 8 assists
J.Howard - 8 points 7 boards
R.Alston - 16 points 6 boards 6 assists

UP NEXT: Sunday AT Hornets

Mavericks 109 Celtics 95

More than half way through the 6 game road trip, the Mavs are looking good with 4 wins and no losses. Boston put up a fight but they really don’t have the horse power to stay with the Mavs. Not offensively or defensively. Yes, Paul Pierce scored 30 points but he only hit 5 of 18 shots from the field and relied on his free throw shooting to get him there as he hit 19 of 21 from the line.

Otherwise, the game was a display for the Mavs on how to win. Shooting percentage was 56% to the Celtics 36%. Mavs had everyone involved in moving and scoring with 28 assists to only 16 for Boston. Mavs out rebounded them by 41 to 34. Mavs had 8 blocks, Boston 3. Are you getting the picture? Even with Dampier in foul trouble early and unable to play most of the game, there was little drop off as Diop comes in, plays well and grabs 11 boards. Dirk only has to play about 30 minutes.

D.Nowitzki - 20 points 4 boards
J.Terry - 29 points 6 boards 3 assists
J.Howard -19 points 11 boards
D.Harris - 18 points 4 boards 6 assists
D.Diop - 4 points 11 boards

UP NEXT: Sunday AT Hawks
========================
SPURS 90 Pistons 89

This was a strange but exciting game. It seemed like 4 small games instead of 1 big one. The 1st game was won by the Spurs as they broke out and had a 27 to 16 lead after the first quarter. The 2nd game was won by the Pistons as they scored 31 while holding the Spurs to only 18 points going into half time. The 3 game was won by the Spurs as the defense hold the Pistons to 14 points while scoring 26 of their own.

Then came the 4th period and the Pistons score 28 points while holding the Spurs to only 19. The last few minutes were all about Playoff atmosphere until the refs decided to get a lot of camera time as whistles started to go off for seemingly no reason. Both teams were equally mystified by the slowness of the calls or why a call was even made. It was like the refs were told they would get paid by the number of times they blew their whistles. The last 20 seconds took forever as the refs blew whistle and they blew calls.

The Spurs are up 85 to 84. Manu is fouled and makes both free throws. 87 to 84. Richard Hamilton shoots and get the phantom foul by the refs against Bowen of the Spurs. In Karmac justice, he misses both shots and he is an 86% shooter from the line. Then Duncan gets a trip to the line and hits only 1 of his 2 shots. 88 to 84. 10 seconds left for Billips and he hits a jumper and it is 88 to 86. 4 seconds left and Manu is fouled to stop the clock. Manu hits both pressure packed shots with the game on the line and it is 90 to 86. The Spurs move out of Tayshaun Prince’s way to let him take the last shot and he hits a 3 as time runs out and it is a 90 to 89 win for the Spurs.

T.Duncan - 17 points 14 boards
T.Parker - 22 points 3 boards 7 assists
M.Ginobili - 10 points 4 boards 2 assists
F.Elson - 9 points 10 boards
B.Barry - 16 points 3 boards

UP NEXT: Sunday AT Sonics

Mavericks 104 Hawks 97

The Mavs open the game by scoring 39 points in the 1st period while holding the Hawks to only 19. Mav fans were having visions of winning a game by 100 points but a couple of Josh’s, namely Childress and Smith, had other ideas. Amazingly, the Hawks came back out and played the 2nd quarter and the third quarter and by the 4th quarter actually had climbed out of the deep hole. They even took the lead for the first time in the game at 79 to 77. Losing that huge lead seemed to stir the Mavs and they went on a 9 point run as the offense came alive. As the Mav outside shooters found the range from 3 point land, the Hawks finally were unable to answer. They would continue to play hard but looked like there just wasn’t enough left in the tank.

D.Nowitzki - 28 points 4 boards
J.Terry - 27 points 3 boards 6 assists 8 turnovers
J.Howard - 28 points 5 boards
J.Stackhouse - 8 points 6 boards
D.Diop - 1 point 9 boards

UP NEXT: Tuesday AT Hornets
===========================
Rockets 94 Hornets 106

To win in the NBA a team has to defend either the inside or the outside shooter. Sunday against the Hornets, the Rockets did neither. They were out shot from the field, from beyond the arc, the foul line while turning the ball over more then the Hornets. They also couldn’t stop the Hornets pick and roll seemingly not able to defend either player consistently. It made for a long afternoon of futility even though it only took about two hours to lose this game.

Y.Ming - 16 points 7 boards
T.McGrady - 31 points 5 boards 6 assists
R.Alston - 12 points 2 boards 3 assists
L.Head - 15 points 2 boards

UP NEXT: Bucks
==========================
Spurs 120 Sonics 79

It rained in Seattle but the Sonics were the only ones that got soaked because the Spurs rained 3 pointers on them. The Spurs hit 16 3’s by 8 different players. It is the way to beat the zone defense the Sonics threw at the Spurs. It allowed seven Spurs to score in double figures and never really be threatened in the game. The Spurs shot 53% from the field and 52% from 3 point range. The Sonics were held to 37% shooting. In the final period, the Spurs scored 39 points while the Sonics only managed 14.

T.Duncan - 16 points 10 boards
T.Parker - 18 points 1 board 7 assists
M.Ginobili - 19 points 4 boards 2 assists
B.Bowen - 10 points 3 boards
J.Vaughn - 13 points 3 boards 4 assists
M.Bonner - 12 points 5 boards
M.Finley - 10 points 4 boards

UP NEXT: AT WARRIORS

Rockets 106 Bucks 87

The Rockets clinch a playoff spot with the win. Normally, I don’t talk about teams and their injuries because it sounds like someone is just making excuses for losing and no one really cares about them if you win the game. In this case, the Bucks are so depleted, it is hard to not mention their injured. The have/had at least 5 players out. They have about 9 guys healthy and all of them were not starters.

So it is understandable the Rockets weren’t making big noises about grabbing a playoff spot yet. They still have their own issues right now and need to improve a lot to be considered a serious contender in the playoffs.

In the game, to win like they did, look at the minutes played by the starters. Ming 36, McGrady 40, Alston 41, Howard 34, Battier 29. It doesn’t seem like the coach was happy with only a 20 point lead or the team needs the work. Neither is good sign against a team this weakened.

Y.Ming - 22 points 7 boards
T.McGrady - 22 points 9 boards
S.Battier - 10 points 5 boards
J.Howard - 12 points 10 boards 4 assists
R.Alston - 13 points 4 boards 3 assists
L.Head - 13 points 2 boards 2 assists

UP NEXT: Wednesday AT Clippers
====================
Spurs 126 Warriors 89

The last time these two met, the Warriors scored 89 points while the Spurs scored 129. So in one sense, the Warriors improved by 3 points. But, fantasy’s aside, this was really not a game for very long after it started. At the end of the 1st period, both teams had scored over 30 or more points as the Spurs took a 36 to 30 lead. In the 2nd period, the Spurs scored 37 while holding the warriors to 24 points. It got worse, for the Warriors, from there since by the end of the 3rd period they had only added 12 points while the Spurs hung up 29 more points. The 4th period was just to finish out the game. This result, so similar to the earlier game, came after the big 4 man trade the warriors made at mid-season. I guess the 4 guys who were traded weren’t the problem after all. Don Nelson fortunes have changed since he no longer coaches the Mavs. Still, the warriors are fighting for an 8th seed spot so the game was important, they just didn’t play well while the Spurs played very well.

T.Duncan - 20 points 8 boards 5 assists
T.Parker - 20 points 2 boards 9 assists
M.Ginobili - 17 points 6 boards
B.Bowen - 14 points 4 boards
B.Barry - 10 points 2 boards 4 assists
M.Finley - 20 points 3 boards (played 20 min.)

How good were the Spurs? How bad were the Warriors?
Spurs shoot 59.7% from the field. Warriors, 37%
Spurs shoot 3’s - 10 for 17, 59.7% Warriors, 5 for 22, 23%
Rebounds - Spurs 46 Warriors 33

UP NEXT: WEDNESDAY, HORNETS

Mavericks 105 Hornets 89

The Mavs complete a 6 games in 10 days road trip with a perfect record as they dominate the Hornets. Mavericks take an early 1st quarter lead and hold on to it until the Hornets, who are playing for the 8th seed, make a surprising 11 point run in the 2nd quarter to take the lead. The Mavs were having no thoughts of an upset, quickly righted things on the defensive end and went on a run themselves that put them back in the lead for good. By the 4th quarter the lead had ballooned and was over 30 points. An ill and weak Dirk only played about 25 minutes but others took up the slack and the Mavs cruised to the win.

D.Nowitzki - 15 points 3 boards
J.Terry - 19 points 4 boards 7 assists
J.Howard - 25 points 10 boards
J.Stackhouse - 7 points 7 assists
D.Harris - 14 points 3 boards

UP NEXT: Bucks

Mavericks 105 Bucks 103

The Maverick grind out a win that must make the coach proud. They lose Dirk to an ankle sprain in the first half and then Josh Howard gets injured with the game on the line in the 4th quarter. Buckner is still playing his way back while Devean George wasn’t playing. These are the kind of times when you need a good coach to make a difference. Avery must have pulled the right strings because even with some bad execution by the Mavs at the end of the game, they pulled out their 60th win of the season.

The last place Bucks had a great chance to win this game and probably would have won if they were playing a lessor team. Dirk only played about 16 minutes but still scored 17 points. Stackhouse got more game time since Avery wouldn’t risk playing Devean George too many minutes too soon after his return. Stackhouse come through with 21 points and though he isn’t known for his defense, he is contributing more and more.

The game stats shown this is a game the Mavs could have lost easily but they didn’t and that is what good teams do. Especially in the playoffs and that is the Mavs goal.

D.Nowitzki - 17 points 5 boards
J.Terry - 27 points 1 board 5 assists
J.Howard - 17 points 9 boards
J.Stackhouse - 21 points 3 assists
D.Harris - 13 points 4 boards 5 assists

FG shooting - Mavs 45% Bucks 50%
3’s shooting - Mavs 11 of 28 Bucks 5 of 12
Rebounds - Mavs 41 Bucks 43
Turnovers - Mavs 12 Bucks 14

UP NEXT: Friday, Knicks
=======================
Rockets 92 Clippers 87

The Rockets got off to a shaky start as Ming picked up two quick fouls in the 1st period and had to take a seat before he got his offense untracked. League officials should look at the hacks Ming has to take without getting the fouls called and then look at the “touches” he gets called a foul on him. It is unreal. But Ming would come back with an “offensive” attitude and that was good for the Rockets.

Without Ming in the middle the clippers were able to drive the lane and then hit from outside as the Rocket defense was slow to adjust. It was not looking good for the Rockets and the Clips lead after the 1st was 29 to 21 points. Each team made their runs and the other team would find an answer and keep the game close. Until the 3rd period when the Clips only scored 12 points. It was their downfall as they used a lot of energy playing catch up. Even when the Clips took the lead late in the game, it wasn’t for good. The shooters just didn’t have the legs to shoot well and missed open shots killed them at the end of the game. The Rockets made enough of their free throws while the Clips missed enough of their shots, including a desperate 3 point attempt to tie the game. The shooter was fouled but it was called a 2 point attempt and the chance was lost.

Y.Ming - 24 points 15 boards
T.McGrady - 27 points 5 boards 8 assists
R.Alston - 14 points 4 boards 9 assists
C.Hayes - 10 points 9 boards

UP NEXT: Friday AT Lakers
========================
Spurs 92 Hornets 88

It was a game that was, at times, very strange.

When do two technicals, called on the Spurs coach, NOT equal an ejection from the game but makes him leave the game? Maybe when one of them is an “oops”. This call / no call took a while to figure out. At the end of the 2nd period, Popovich yelled at official Pat Fraher, who gave him a technical. A moment later, referee Ron Olesiak also hit Popovich with a technical.

Popovich walked off the court before Olesiak explained that he hadn’t heard Fraher make the initial call and that only one technical was warranted. A team official went to retrieve Popovich, but he elected to stay in his office.

“I saw two different referees call a technical, and I quickly added that in my head, and it came out two,” Popovich said. “That means you’re gone, and if you hang around, you get fined thousands of dollars. So I walked out the tunnel.”

The coach stayed in the dressing room for the rest of the 1:16 of the half. He may have wanted to see if there was a better game on TV since he had to watch his team allow the Hornets to shoot 54% and take a 52 to 46 lead.

It was also strange for Tony Parker who was taken out of the game and replaced with Jacque Vaughn. Parker was having a lousy night and finished the game with only 6 points and 3 assists. He also couldn’t seem to play defense and one time blew an inbound pass, so he was yanked. In a not so subtle statement later, this was heard. “That game belonged to Jacque Vaughn,” Spurs coach Gregg Popovich said. “His energy, his defense, his leadership on the court, his rebounding, everything. (uh ... hear that Parker?)

It was strange for Brent Barry too. He could only hit 3 pointers. In fact, he missed five of 10 shots but all the shots he hit were 3’s. Luckily for the Spurs, he hit them all in the 4th period and the last one was the game winner for the Spurs.

Quick hits:  Hornets shot 47 percent from the field and 61.5 percent from three-point range, while Spurs shot 43.6 percent from the field and 39.3 from long distance ... Hornets out rebounded Spurs, 38-35 ... New Orleans finished with 20 turnovers, San Antonio 10.

ODD STAT: Duncan makes his first 3 pointer of the season.

T.Duncan - 31 points 5 boards 3 assists
M.Ginobili - 12 points 5 boards 7 assists
B.Bowen - 7 points 8 boards
B.Barry - 15 points 4 boards
M.Finley - 13 points 3 boards 4 assists

UP NEXT: Friday, Jazz

MAVERICKS 105, KNICKS 103

There were milestones a plenty! The franchise record of 61 wins in a season. Dirk reaches and passes the 15,000 mark in his career. Mavs have their worst shooting quarter of the season, 10.5% in the third when they only scored 19 points. Mavs have an opponent, season high 26 turnovers. Mavs finished 27 and 3 against the Eastern Conference. So, what does it all mean Dirk? “Nothing,” Nowitzki said. He is right.

They won despite shooting 38.5% from the field and being out rebounded by a 46 to 36 margin while being outscored in the paint 42 to 22. The free throw line was friendly for the Mavs as they hit 35 out of 39 attempts. Even though the two teams took turns winning quarters, the only numbers that mattered was the final score. It is still considered unlucky to be behind at the end of the game.

The last minutes of a close game is where an MVP is supposed to stand out. Dirk hit 2 jumpers, hit his free throws and grabbed important rebounds to seal the deal.

D.Nowitzki - 30 points 3 boards 2 assists
J.Terry - 14 points 4 boards 4 assists
J.Howard - 20 points 8 boards 2 assists
E.Dampier - 8 points 10 boards
J.Stackhouse - 19 points 3 boards 6 assists

UP NEXT: Sunday AT Suns
=======================
Rockets 107 Lakers 104 O.T.

For almost 3 hours, the game hung in balance, waiting for the last shot to fall as time ran out. It was the Rockets coming away with the win after losing the lead in the 4th period and allowing the Lakers to make the run to tie the game. It was also the Rockets who fell behind in OT as the lakers took a 4 point lead. A rare, against Kobe, call for traveling, began the fall for the lakers and Kobe again was the culprit when McGrady was fouled beyond the arc while shooting a 3. T-Mac made all 3 shots. Rafe Alston was fouled and made both free throws. The lakers get the ball back, with time running out, get it to kobe who launches his shot, it misses. Yao grabs the rebound and the Rockets take the road win. Kobe scores 8 of the lakers 9 points in OT. He ends the game with 53 points and has 44 of the Lakers 88 shots.

Y.Ming - 39 points 11 boards
T.McGrady - 30 points 5 boards 10 assists (hits 7 of 24 shots)
S.Battier - 11 points 5 boards
R.Alston - 19 points 6 boards 3 assists
C.Hayes - 6 points 14 boards

Shoot FG - Rockets 38% Lakers 41%
FT - Rockets 88% Lakers 71%
Rebounds - Rockets 56 Lakers 47

ODD STAT: only 3 lakers got to the free throw line

UP NEXT: Sunday, Jazz
=====================
SPURS 102 JAZZ 93

The Spurs big 3 put on a show that even had the opposing players speaking out.  “They just played some beautiful basketball and we can learn a lot from a team like this,” Jazz point guard Deron Williams said. “They share the ball, make the extra pass and don’t care who gets the glory.” Of course it helps if your big 3 are named Duncan, Ginobili and Parker. Parker excelled after struggling through some recent games. He looked more like the all-star Tony Parker than the sluggish recent player.

Spurs won this game the old fashioned way. They shot 52% from the field, 40% from beyond the arc and out rebounded the Jazz by a 40 to 34 margin. The Jazz shot 43% and 25%. The above mentioned guard, Williams was averaging 12 assists a game until Parker held him to 5 with 5 turnovers. The Jazz had 5 players score in double figures but they didn’t have a big 3.

T.Duncan - 20 points 14 boards
T.Parker - 23 points 4 boards 11 assists
M.Ginobili - 25 points 6 boards 4 assists
M.Finley - 12 points 2 boards 3 assists

UP NEXT: Sunday AT Pacers

Mavericks 104 Suns 126
Rockets 83 Jazz 86
Spurs 99 Pacers 100

I am still in denial. It isn’t possible for all three of my Texas teams to lose on the same day. While I am trying to get over my teams experiencing some kind of cosmic April fool joke, here are some foolish facts or ideas or thinking.

If the Mavs continue to let a team shoot 65% from the field, they will lose a lot more games. Of course the Suns were trying to shoot 100%. The Mavs weren’t really that bad, it was just a case of the stars aligned for the Suns.

In the NBA, the end of the 4th period is all about execution so, the Jazz executed the Rockets to win the game. Rockets missed shots, missed rebounds, missed on defense to lose their lead and the game. This is the time for the Rockets to be blasting into the playoffs but instead they fizzled. They will see the Jazz again in the playoffs. Wasted a great effort by Yao.

I am going with the Spurs coach on this one. “I thought it was a pathetic performance for a team that’s trying to get prepared to go into the playoffs and get focused for that,” Popovich said. “That was very disappointing.” The Spurs still are missing free throws with the game on the line and too many turnovers will kill you in the playoffs. How does a team like the Spurs let a guy in the lane to score with less then 2 seconds in the game? That will make for a short playoff run.

I will now try to return to my right mind and get past my April Fool Day nightmare.

Mavericks UP NEXT: Tuesday AT Kings
Rockets UP NEXT: Wednesday AT Warriors
Spurs UP NEXT: Tuesday, Sonics

Mavericks 97 Kings 93

No Dirk, no problem, at least when you are playing the Kings. Even with Dirk not playing because of food poisoning, the Kings couldn’t win. The Maverick starters took up the challenge and played well. The bench too took up any slack with Stackhouse again getting extended minutes. Jet and Howard both played 40 or more minutes to insure the win and had big scoring nights. The defense didn’t suffer either, the Kings were held to 39% shooting as the Mavs also blocked 7 shots.

J.Terry - 27 points 5 boards 5 assists
J.Howard - 29 points 8 boards
D.George - 9 points 8 boards
J.Stackhouse - 23 points 5 boards 5 assists

UP NEXT: Friday AT Nuggets
==========================
Spurs 110 Sonics 91

The Spurs played good hosts to the sonics except for that whole “we will make you look like an awful team” thing. But, they did give the sonics a choice about how they wanted to get beat, by Tim Duncan. Sonics chose to double Duncan so he wouldn’t score so Duncan became a passer and rebounder as he found Bruce Bowen open most of the night. Bowen went on to shoot 6 of 9 from 3 point land as the team hit 9 of 21 attempts. As a team, The Spurs had 19 assists (on 23 baskets) in the first half.

By the end of the 3rd period, the Spurs had a 91 to 65 point lead, and the starters went to the bench after shooting 65% from the field.

T.Duncan - 14 points 5 boards 7 assists
T.Parker - 16 points 6 boards 4 assists
M.Ginobili - 8 points 4 boards 5 assists
B.Bowen - 18 points
F.Oberto - 11 points 10 boards
M.Bonner - 8 points 9 boards
M.Finley - 13 points 2 boards

Rebounds - Spurs 41 Sonics 22

UP NEXT: Thursday, Suns

Rockets 99 Warriors 110

First they lose T-Mac and then the game. McGrady went out, with his reoccurring back problems, in the 1st period. The warriors decided to take Yao out of the game too by double, and at times, triple teaming him. The strategy worked as they held Yao to 9 points.

I know what you are thinking. Someone should have been open on the perimeter to make the warriors pay for collapsing in the middle. Someone may have been but it didn’t matter because the Rockets turned the ball over 24 times. The Rockets may have discovered that passing into a double and triple team defense isn’t a good idea. Sadly, they may have learned that lesson too late to save this game. They did mount a serious charge in the late stages of the game but it was just too big a hole to climb out and over before time ran out.

This stat is telling: Points off Turnovers, Golden State 22 Houston 8.

Y.Ming - 9 points 11 boards
T.McGrady - 0 points 2 boards 3 assists-played 6:45 minutes
S.Battier - 17 points 6 boards
R.Alston - 18 points 4 boards 3 assists
L.Head - 30 points 6 boards 2 assists
C.Hayes - 8 points 12 boards

UP NEXT: Friday, Trailblazers

Spurs 92 Suns 85

It may not seem like much of an off night but the Suns had one and the Spurs defense was the reason. One example, Steve Nash wearing Bruce Bowen for a jersey most of the night. Nash still finished with 20 points (on 6 of 14 shooting), 7 assists but had 6 turnovers, 5 fouls and trouble running the offense.

It has been heard a lot this season. The opponent saying they had an off night when they played the Spurs. Like when the league’s most prolific offense, shoots a season low 38% and scores the 2nd fewest points of the season and more than 25 below their nightly average. Or when Francisco Elson and Fabricio Oberto help double team the younger and quicker Amare Stoudemire and they grab 19 rebounds between them. Yes, the Refs blew the whistles a lot and the game took almost 2 hours and 45 minutes to play but holding the Suns to less then 20 points a quarter in the 1st 2 quarters means some good defense is being played.

T.Duncan - 22 points 10 boards 5 assists 5 blocks
T.Parker - 35 points 1 board 3 assists
M.Ginobili - 7 points 5 boards 3 assists
F.Elson - 4 points 10 boards
F.Oberto -2 points 9 boards
M.Finley - 19 points 10 boards

Rebounds - Spurs 50 Suns 43

UP NEXT: Saturday, Warriors

Mavericks 71 Nuggets 75

Forget winning 70 games if you have trouble scoring 70 points in a game.

The good news for Mavs fans is they went on the road and held the home team to, its season low, 75 points. The bad news is, when you can’t get an open jump shot to fall and score your lowest point total of the season, you lose anyway. There is also that “we get Dirk back from the bad ankle injury and food poisoning then we lose Josh Howard to a bad ankle injury.” (sigh)

The real issue is, it was just one of those games that you wish your team didn’t have but all teams have them. Almost no one seems to have the ability to make a shot. Howard, in his 7 minutes of play, was 1 for 4. Dirk, 9 of 23. D.George, 2 of 10. The Jet, 6 of 20. Stackhouse, the point machine, 2 of 12. Get the picture? Now there were two guys that shot well but they aren’t the guys you count on to win. D.Harris was 5 for 5 and E.Dampier was 4 for 5.

But on a night when the Mavs hold the Nuggets to 35% FG shooting, they were only able to shoot 36% on 30 of 83 shots. Both teams rebounded well and had similar assists. The biggest difference was turnovers where the Mavs had 16 to the Nuggets 11 and the Nuggets scored 17 points off them while holding the Mavs to 7.

D.Nowitzki - 22 points 11 boards
J.Terry - 13 points 3 boards 4 assists
E.Dampier - 11 points 13 boards
J.Stackhouse - 7 points 4 boards 4 assists
D.Harris - 10 points 5 boards

UP NEXT: Trailblazers
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Rockets 78 Trailblazers 85

Ok, so Yao and Tracy didn’t play due to injury. Still, with 2.5 minutes left in the game, the Rockets were up by a point and at home. Aren’t you supposed to win the game? For the third time in a row, at home, the Rockets lost.

The scoring in the 3rd and 4th periods are usually when games are won but in this game, both teams scored the same number of points in the 3rd and 4th periods. They both scored 21 points in the 3rd and 24 in the 4th. The Rockets were only outscored by 2 points in the 2nd period, 19 to 17. So the 1st period was key as the Rockets were outscored by a 23 to only 14 margin.

Neither team was dominate but at the end, the trailblazers made their shots and the Rockets didn’t. Game over, good night, drive home safe.

S.Battier - 12 points 5 boards
J.Howard - 14 points 11 boards
R.Alston - 8 points 3 boards 6 assists
L.Head - 19 points 1 board 3 assists
D.Mutombo - 4 points 5 boards
C.Hayes -7 points 12 boards
K.Snyder - 10 points 2 boards

UP NEXT: Sunday AT Kings