The NBA reduced the flagrant foul that was assessed to Dirk Nowitzki in overtime of Saturday's game 3 down to a personal foul. Game 4: Dallas at Memphis (May 1) Game 4 found Memphis in a do-or-die situation and the Grizzlies decided to shuffle their starting roster and started Hakim Warrick in place of Jake Tsakalidis (and moved Pau Gasol to center) and Mike Miller in place of Eddie Jones (who had a hand injury). Marquis Daniels was unable to play for Dallas due to a strained right hamstring. Memphis held an early 8-4 lead with 9 minutes to go and a 3-pointer by Josh Howard kicked off 7 straight points by Dallas to put them up 11-8 with 6:15 left. The game stayed close with Dallas holding a small lead the rest of the quarter, none larger than 4 points. Dallas led 26-23 after 1. Gasol and Miller were aggressive early and Gasol had 12 points and Miller had 6 points on 3-5 FG - but shot just 1-6 FG the rest of the game. Dirk Nowitzki and Josh Howard each had 8 points. The Grizzlies were attacking the boards early on and won the rebounding war in the quarter 11-9, but it was the only quarter they had an advantage on the boards. Memphis missed their first 4 shots and had 2 turnovers to open the 2nd quarter and Dallas went on a 6-1 mini-run to go up 32-24 with 8 minutes to go. Memphis finally found the basket (ending a 5 1/2 minute field goal drought) and then scored the next 7 points to pull within 31-32 with 6:30 remaining. Nowitzki and Howard connected on jumpers to put Dallas up 38-33 with 2:55 left. Dallas led 41-37 with 1:30 left and the Mavs had a minute of offensive flurry as Jerry Stackhouse hit a jumper, Nowitzki hit a quick 3-pointer, and Stackhouse stole the ball and was fouled and hit 2 free throws to give Dallas a 48-37 lead with 30 seconds to go. Gasol had a layup with 15 seconds remaining to cap the quarter scoring. Dallas led 48-39 at the half. Dallas out-scored Memphis 22-16 in the 2nd quarter. For the half, Dallas shot 46% FG and Memphis shot 42% FG. Gasol hit a jumper and Miller made 2 free throws (his first points since the 1st quarter) to open the 3rd quarter and pull Memphis within 43-48 with 11:05 remaining. Memphis then missed their next 3 shots and then committed 3 straight turnovers as Dallas scored the next 9 points to go up 57-43 with 8:05 to go. Consecutive jumpers by Nowitzki gave Dallas a 70-53 lead with 3:25 remaining. Memphis would get no closer than 15 points the rest of the quarter and a layup by Devin Harris gave Dallas a 20 point lead with 1 minute to go. Dallas led 79-61 after 3. Nowitzki had 12 points in the 3rd quarter. Both teams shot 50% FG in the 3rd quarter, but Dallas attempted 6 more shots (11-22) and connected on 3 3-pointers in out-scoring Memphis 31-22 in the quarter. Dallas missed on 3 shots on 1 possession to open the 4th quarter and Bobby Jackson hit a jumper to pull Memphis within 63-79 with 11 minutes remaining. Dallas then went on an 11-2 run, including 7 points by Stackhouse, to take a commanding 90-65 lead with 7:35 to go. 2 free throws by Erick Dampier gave Dallas their largest lead at 98-68 with 4:40 left. Dallas won 102-76. Dallas swept the series 4-0. It ended up being a surprisingly easy win. What ever fight Memphis had in them was all used up after the 1st quarter. Dallas out-scored Memphis 76-53 in the last 3 quarters and out-rebounded Memphis 36-22 and totally dominated those quarters. Memphis had just 16 points in the 2nd quarter and just 15 points in the 4th quarter. 76 is the fewest an opponent has scored in a Mavs playoff game. For the game, Dallas shot 49.4% (39-79) FG including 7-12 3-pointers and Memphis shot 41.8% (28-67) FG including 0-7 3-pointers - the most 3-pointers attempted without a make by an Mavs playoff opponent. Dallas was a perfect 17-17 from the line - the 3rd time they've been perfect in the playoffs. Memphis shot 20-28 FT. Dallas out-rebounded Memphis 45-32 including 12-8 offensive. Dallas had 21 assists and Memphis had a mere 9 assists (no surprise, also an opponent playoff low). Dallas had 12 turnovers and Memphis had 14 turnovers (but 11 came in the 2nd and 3rd quarters where Dallas was able to create some distance). Once again Dirk Nowitzki lead the way for Dallas. He had 27 points on 12-21 FG and 3-3 3-pointers in 35 minutes - that's right, he didn't attempt a free throw (Memphis was giving him open looks, so he was taking them and didn't attack the basket much). He also had 7 rebounds, 3 assists, and 2 steals. Josh Howard had a nice outing with 24 points including 3-4 3-pointers, 9 rebounds, and 2 assists. Jerry Stackhouse finally found his shooting touch and had 19 points. He also dished the ball 5 times. Jason Terry didn't have the shooting touch and had 12 points including 4-11 FG and also had 5 assists. Erick Dampier and Adrian Griffin continued to do the dirty work. Griff had 6 points and 5 rebounds in 26 minutes. Dampier had 4 points including 1-5 FG, 8 rebounds including 4 offensive, and 3 nice blocks. DeSagana Diop shared center duty (and guarding Pau Gasol duty) with Damp. Diop missed his only shot attempted and had 8 rebounds including 4 offensive and 2 blocks. Devin Harris had a nice outing with 6 points on 3-3 FG and 3 assists in 19 minutes. With the blowout, all available played. Josh Powell (who also spelled Nowitzki a little in the 1st half) missed his only attempt and played 10 minutes. DJ Mbenga had 2 points and 2 rebounds in 4 minutes and Darrell Armstrong had 2 points and 2 rebounds in 5 minutes. Pau Gasol was aggressive early but didn't get any help. 19 of his 25 points came in the 1st half. He also had 6 rebounds, but also had 4 turnovers. Mike Miller was the only other Grizzly in double-digits. Miller had 10 points including 4-11 FG. Shawn Battier had 5 points and 7 rebounds. Chucky Atkins had 8 points and 4 assists. Rookie Hakim Warrick didn't respond well to getting the start and had 4 points including 1-6 FG and 4 rebounds in 18 minutes. Bobby Jackson had 8 points and Dahntay Jones had 7 points off the bench. Lorenzen Wright had just 4 points and 4 rebounds. Jake Tsakalidis did not see court time until early in the 3rd quarter and hit his only shot and played just 10 minutes. Eddie Jones gave a valiant go in trying to play with his injured hand, but only played 5 minutes because of it and didn't attempt a shot. It was only the 2nd time that Dallas has swept a team (3-0 vs Minnesota in 2002) and the first time the Mavs have swept in a 7-game series. Memphis lost their NBA record 12th straight playoff game (and to be fair, all of their series have been since the 1st round was expanded to a best 7-game series). Both the Dallas record low for points in a 4-game series (393, 98.2 points) and an opponent low for points (337 - shattering the old record of 103.0) were set. Dallas will face the winner of the San Antonio-Sacramento series - that series will definitely go 6 games and may even go 7 games. Thus, the schedule for the next round is still unknown. If that series ends in 6 games, game 1 will probably start on Sunday. If that series goes the full 7 games, Dallas' next game will likely be on Tuesday. If Spurs wins, the game will be in San Antonio and if Sacramento wins, Dallas will have home court. Quotes [scattered quotes transcribed by me - NBATV had a game on so they didn't broadcast the usual full coaches and 2 player press conferences] Avery Johnson: "Tonight this was our best performance, obviously, of the series and it came at the right time. We talked about coming in to this series and tonight's game especially and just played our system, which is just tough hard-nose defense, and try to move the ball on offense and try to get just good shots against a really stingy team. The way this series went is not indicative of how good Memphis is. They are a much better team than what they showed and obviously coach Fratello is somebody who I really, really, really like. I think he does a terrific job and they had a really nice season. And obviously with Jerry West over there gives them a lot of experience. So again, if we had to play this series all over again and it started tomorrow, it would probably go 7 games because they've got a really good team. We had some special performances tonight. Obviously I thought Dirk played like an MVP the whole series. Adrian Griffin and our centers, DeSagana Diop and Erick Dampier, were huge for us. Devin Harris made a step forward for us tonight no matter what the stats show. We had this game pinpointed as the game we really wanted to see something from him and he did some really nice stuff out there on the court in terms of running our team, dictating the tempo we wanted to play. So he made a step forward and we're going to need that as we move forward. We're glad to get this series over. Obviously we would have had 4 swings at it. We're glad to get it at the 1st swing because now it's time for us to try to get some bodies healed and get back to practice, because that's my favorite part of this whole gig is practice." Johnson on the time off before round 2: "We've had some guys out for long periods of time. We've got to whip those guys back in shape. We're waiting on Van Horn to come back, which we think he can come back in about a week to 10 days. Hopefully, that other series will stretch to 7 games." Dirk Nowitzki: "I think our defense was pretty good. I think that's what we pride ourselves on all season long and we were able to carry it over a little bit in the playoffs. Offensively I think we're moving the ball well. So we're just going to sit back and work hard this week and see what's coming on next." Nowitzki on the sweep: "Well, you know, it's very important in this league that the momentum is always on your side in a series. And you know, we made sure in the 3rd game and even today we came out aggressive and really set the tone that we don't want any momentum to change. Obviously if you have a chance to close a series out, you want to do it and get some rest. I think a couple of the guys have some injuries and we'll be all right in the 2nd round." Nowitzki: "It was very important for us. I think that game 3 obviously was the big game for us. They basically had it won and we were able to tie it at the end and carry the momentum in to overtime and steal one. I think today they still came out firing and took it to us, but we kept staying right there and kept staying around and built a little lead at halftime. I think it was good. It's not easy to win, especially 2 games on the road in a row against a good home team. It's never easy to close out a series like that. But I think our defense was solid pretty much all series long. We did a nice job on Pau I thought. We were focusing on Miller pretty much all series long. We didn't want him to get going with his outside shot and I think we did a great job on him and obviously taking those 2 guys, or limiting those 2 guys, was very big for us to win the series." Nowitzki: "Its not easy to win 2 games on the road. Especially 2 games against a good home team. We wanted to focus on Pau and make sure we double-teamed him as much as possible. We also wanted to limit Mike [Miller] and take away his outside shot. I thought we did a good job this series on taking both of these guys out of their rhythms. I felt like my all around game could have been better. I was fortunate to make some big shots in big situations and hopefully my all around game can keep getting better and I can carry it over into the next round." Nowitzki: "It was very important for us to close this out tonight. We wanted to get a lead and come out the 2nd half with that killer instinct, and fortunately for us we were able to do so. Today we came out firing, and luckily for us, we're moving on." Nowitzki: "I thought game 3 was the big difference for us. I thought they still came out strong tonight, but we came out firing today and fortunately we're moving on." Nowitzki: "I'm glad my shot was falling this series and I was able to help the team win. It's different from last year when I struggled in the playoffs." Nowitzki on his game: "I didn't get to the line at all. I didn't rebound the ball well in this series. I thought I could have passed the ball a lot better. I'm always a work in progress." Nowitzki on the next round: "I'm ready to get going. I really don't like to wait. I'm not really good at sitting around. It's hard to keep in a rhythm, but maybe we'll be able to work on our defensive rotation and move on." Nowitzki: "We have some guys banged up and we'll get some rest. But we can't relax too much. We've still got to get some work done this week, work on some defense location, stuff that we messed up this week and just, you know, stay sharp." Josh Howard: "I wanted to come out real aggressive in tonight's game. We knew what we had to do to take care of business and guys came out and competed and pretty much ran them out of the gym." Howard on the 3rd quarter: "I just think in the locker room, guys were mentally focused and knew what we had to do and came out and competed well." Jason Terry: "We'll go home and watch San Antonio and Sacramento now. We were able to handle our business and get it over. It definitely goes to show you that the NBA is fantastic. The series that are going on are the best basketball I've seen in years. I'm glad we got our business taken care of. We were definitely hot coming in. We're in the top 3 in the league for a reason. We thought they'd come out with a fight tonight, which they did. We finally got into it in the 3rd. I'll continue to watch the playoffs and learn in order to get ready." Terry: "It was a good series. Memphis put up a tough fight. We knew what they were going to do tonight, you know, come out real aggressive in the 1st half. But if we could substain our momentum and get some defensive stops and put together 2 great outstanding quarters - 15 points and 16 points - and that pretty much was the game." Terry: "I thought we grew up, especially with that win in game 3. We came in, our backs were against the wall. They came out with tons of energy at home and we were very resilient. We were resilient and got the win in game 3. But it says a lot more about our character coming in game 4 and really closing them out on the road. Now we get to rest up and get ready for the next series against San Antonio or Sacramento." Terry on if Dallas sent a message with the sweep: "Not at all. This is not about sending a message. It's about: 'Are you playing your style of basketball?' That was the most important thing to come out of this." Terry when asked about Howard: "Man, Josh Howard, but series MVP you think it would go to Dirk - I'm looking at Erick Dampier with the job he did on Gasol all series long, making it tough on him. And the rebounds he had. He was a big factor in this series." Terry on the sweep: "It's a good start. But that's all it is. If our goal was to win the 1st round and go home, we've done our job. But that's not our goal." Terry: "We were one of the top 3 teams in the league during the regular season for a reason. I think if we continue to get better, work on our system, win games with our defense and, hey, the sky is the limit." Jerry Stackhouse: "We're working on our goals. It was about getting better, looking sharper over the past 3 games." Stackhouse: "Avery set the bar high for us at the beginning of the season. We wanted to reach those goals. It's not always rosy. Everyone works from the top to the bottom. It was tough last year still playing and battling going to 7 games. There was a team waiting for us; now were the ones waiting. There will be a lot TV watching now. The playoffs have been very exciting this year." Erick Dampier on the sweep: "It feels great. We were able to get 2 wins at home, come here with fresh minds, and just go out there and play hard the way we can do to win. Guys played great. We played good defense. We were able to get stops, get runs when ever we needed to, and we were able to get easy baskets." Dampier: "It gives us a couple of days of rest, gets guys back healthy and get them back on the floor and get some conditioning. It will be lovely when we get all those guys back. They're a big piece of the puzzle for us." Dampier on Nowitzki: "He's been our MVP for the whole season. He's been doing what he's been doing the whole year. Shooting the ball, coming off of screens, open jump shots, passing the ball to open shooters. Hey, he just plays hard each and every night. We look up to him to bring 20, 25 points every night." Dampier on his game: "Definitely rebounds. Just getting myself position. Try to trick guys out so I could get my hand on the ball, get tips out to some other guys. Every series changes. So we'll see what happens in the next series." Adrian Griffin: "We just wanted to take care of business. We don't want to make any prediction on who we'll play. I think it's a balance of powers. Look at the Lakers, a 7th seed, and how they're playing. You never know. Phoenix has a #2 [seed] and they think because of the number they should be better, but they shouldn't think that way." Griffin: "I think we were focused on coming in and getting the job done and we never got complacent or too relaxed thinking we have a lead. We came out ready to play tonight." Griffin: "Everybody, from the bench to starters, everybody just came in and contributed to the over all success of the team. Everybody just played well." Griffin on Memphis: "The hardest part was Pau. We had to watch how long he is. We've got Diop and Dampier on him. We're a great team. We've got Dirk, who can shoot 3s, and Stackhouse was on them. The Grizzlies had a lot on their hands." Griffin on Nowitzki: "Incredible. Like I said before, he's my MVP. Played well, kept us in the game. He's our superstar and he stepped up this series." Griffin on the next round: "We don't want to make any predictions. But we know if we take care of our business, we can go pretty far." Mike Fratello: "When you get to Game 4, it's always interesting to see how you come out to play. I thought it was with 3 minutes left in the 2nd quarter that our spirit was really broken. It was a 3 point game and then it was 9. That was the breaking point right there." Fratello: "But we gave up an open 3 right there by Dirk. They went on a run. And all of a sudden, their lead was up to 9 points. That's where they broke our spirit." Fratello: "That I thought was the breaking point right there. Was anxious to see how we came out in the 2nd half to start with was to see if we could get back in it again. But it wound up being just a continuation of defensive breakdowns. We had 9 assists at the end of the game, which is not very good. They just dominated the series, they did. If we could have won game 3, who knows how this one would have turned out because it changes a lot of things, changes perspective. But they jumped on the opportunity they had to get up 3-nothing. They came out to break our spirit and they did it right at the end of the 2nd quarter. But this team for us had a terrific year, it really did. Unfortunately, I feel very badly for our fans, I feel badly for the team and our owner, the people upstairs, that it ended the way it did. This team worked very hard the entire year to get to the point where they got to and unfortunately we wound up playing a team - we did not play our basketball and they played great basketball. If they continue to play that same way, they are going to be around for a long time in the NBA playoffs this season. So we'll go back now, finish up our final meetings and then get to work and try to see how we can get better for the future." Fratello: "So I was disappoint in our rebounding. Disappointed on the defense over all. We didn't get after it like I thought we could get after it. I think it expresses what - this is playoff time, this is playoff time. And we have to look and see where we are and who we are and get better at certain things." Fratello: "We just didn't rebound the ball for the whole series, but that's not even fair to say because we were terrible all year. It is what it is. We just don't rebound. Up against that team, the size they have and the way they go after the ball, the truth comes out." Fratello: "We played as well as we could have all year, with the way Damon went down and Chucky coming in. We played night in and night out. It happened very infrequently that we'd have 20 point losses." Pau Gasol: "It's hard to overcome mentally when you are down 3-0 and they make a run and we had a couple of breakdowns in the last couple of minutes in the 1st half. It's hard to overcome it. We've been trying to do it all series long. We just paid a high price with those breakdowns, for 2 or 3 plays in a row that put you in a hole. And obviously they're a pretty good team. They get comfortable when they get in a lead and it's hard for us to come back and make a run. Basically that was it." Gasol: "It was a tough series for us overall. Obviously that loss in the 3rd game put us in a big hole and a big disadvantage." Gasol: "They're a good team. They have a lot of weapons. Their guards can penetrate a lot and with Dirk, you have to always be aware of him. If you try to help, you cause a lot of problems on defense. They have 2 centers whose only job is to pound the glass; they don't have to do much else. It's organized well. They are a good team." Gasol: "We need a little more depth - but it's hard to say right now. We need somebody to get us a few more rebounds, a little bit of extra toughness. We need guys who will hold their ground, be a little more physical, get to loose balls, be able to defend this time of year." Gasol: "I was ready to get a win. I wanted to do that with all my heart. I wanted to come out hard, be aggressive, and come out confident, but obviously, it's a big hit when you're down 3-0 and you're playing a really good team like them." Gasol: "Obviously, it's a really bad ending that nobody wanted. Unfortunately, in this situation with playing Dallas and not playing our best - it's unfortunate. It leaves a bad taste. It's not how we want to be remembered. It's just the way it is; we have to move on and not make the same mistakes next year. We had a great year, but we just weren't able to succeed in the playoffs again." Shane Battier: "We just didn't have it tonight. To beat Dallas you have to bring your A game and we obviously didn't. I thought we played well in the 1st half. We had a lot of energy. Our offensive execution and defensive execution was poor when it mattered. We couldn't get a stop when we needed it." Battier: "I think our offensive execution was poor and our defensive execution was poor when it really mattered. Part of that is their team. They execute like a championship team should." Battier on being swept: "You have to pick yourself up. What fun is life if you don't have challenges to overcome? We're lacking in some areas but I thought we'd be competitive. We got put on our heels in Dallas. We had a very good year and this ending isn't indicative of that." Chucky Atkins: "Dallas played smarter than us. They played harder than us. It seems that their will to win was greater than ours. We had a lot of turnovers and we gave up a lot of offensive rebounds. I think everything snowballed from there." Atkins: "But you've got to give them all the credit in the world. They dissected us. They had some new things that we hadn't seen before. Every time we made an adjustment, they had an answer for it." Atkins: "They run the high pick-and-roll, they run with Jason Terry and Dirk Nowitzki, and it's hard to stop. We played a great team who has a chance at getting to the NBA finals." Atkins on being swept: "I think every franchise has stepping stones. It's a process. It's always disappointing to get swept. We thought we had a legitimate chance going into the series. That's what hurts the most." Bobby Jackson: "I was very shocked at how they played us and how much confidence they had. They had that arrogance about themselves, and which they should. Every team should. I think that's the one thing that's going to get you over the hump in this league. And that's the demeanor that they had, and we didn't have that." Jackson: "This game is about heart and being competitive. It doesn't matter what you did in the regular season, it's about what you do in the playoffs. ... It's embarrassing. I've never been swept in the playoffs." Lorenzen Wright on the 2 home games: "I didn't think either one of these games would turn out the way they did. This game was a result of our last game, which I think we should have won. I think if we had won our last game that tonight would have been different." Wright: "They came out to kill. Josh Howard came out like an assassin. ... They did what they were supposed to do. Maybe they're going to be able to win it all this year." Wright: "We came out and got our butts whipped." Wright on being a free agent: "I most definitely want to be here next year. I'd love to be back. We can't let up next season and we have to add some pieces." Game 4: Dallas Mavericks 102, Memphis Grizzlies 76 at Memphis (May 1) 1st 2nd 3rd 4th - Final 2FG 3FG FG% FT% Dallas 26 22 31 23 - 102 .478 .583 .494 1.000 Memphis 23 16 22 15 - 76 .467 .000 .418 .714 Halftime: Dallas 48-39 3rd Q: Dallas 79-61 Technicals: none Refs: Bob Delaney, Steve Javie, David Jones Attendance: 15,104 (cap 18,119) Did not play due to injury: Marquis Daniels (strained right hamstring) IL: Keith Van Horn (Dal), Anthony Roberson (Mem) Dallas Mavericks REB Player MIN FGM-FGA 3PM-3PA FTM-FTA PTS O-T AST TO PF STL BLK Jason Terry 28 4-11 0-2 4-4 12 0-2 5 2 4 1 0 Adrian Griffin 26 3-6 0-0 0-0 6 3-5 2 1 3 0 0 Josh Howard 38 9-17 3-4 3-3 24 1-9 2 1 4 0 1 Dirk Nowitzki 35 12-21 3-3 0-0 27 0-7 3 2 2 2 0 DeSagana Diop 24 0-1 0-0 0-0 0 4-8 0 1 3 2 2 Jerry Stackhouse 27 6-12 1-3 6-6 19 0-1 5 1 0 1 0 Erick Dampier 24 1-5 0-0 2-2 4 4-8 1 1 3 0 3 Devin Harris 19 3-3 0-0 0-0 6 0-1 3 0 3 0 0 Josh Powell 10 0-1 0-0 0-0 0 0-0 0 1 2 0 0 Darrell Armstrong 5 0-1 0-0 2-2 2 0-2 0 1 1 0 0 DJ Mbenga 4 1-1 0-0 0-0 2 0-2 0 1 1 0 0 Totals 48 39-79 7-12 17-17 102 12-45 21 12 26 6 6 Memphis Grizzlies REB Player MIN FGM-FGA 3PM-3PA FTM-FTA PTS O-T AST TO PF STL BLK Mike Miller 38 4-11 0-2 2-2 10 0-3 2 2 1 1 0 Chucky Atkins 26 3-8 0-1 2-2 8 0-1 4 0 2 1 0 Shane Battier 30 2-5 0-2 1-3 5 4-7 0 1 3 0 0 Hakim Warrick 18 1-6 0-1 2-2 4 0-4 0 2 3 0 0 Pau Gasol 39 9-19 0-0 7-8 25 1-6 0 4 2 1 0 Bobby Jackson 22 3-7 0-1 2-3 8 0-1 0 2 1 0 0 Lorenzen Wright 19 2-5 0-0 0-0 4 2-4 1 1 1 0 0 Dahntay Jones 18 2-4 0-0 3-6 7 1-3 0 1 2 1 0 Jake Tsakalidis 10 1-1 0-0 0-0 2 0-0 0 1 2 0 1 Brian Cardinal 10 0-0 0-0 0-0 0 0-1 0 0 1 0 0 Eddie Jones 5 0-0 0-0 0-0 0 0-1 1 0 0 0 0 Antonio Burks 5 1-1 0-0 1-2 3 0-1 1 0 1 1 0 Totals 48 28-67 0-7 20-28 76 8-32 9 14 19 5 1 patricia Go Mavs!