The 04-05 regular season has ended. Dallas finished the regular season on a 9 game winning streak for an overall record of 58-24 - the 2nd best record in team history (most: 60, 3rd most: 57). They were 29-12 at home and 29-12 on the road, setting the team record for most road wins (old: 27). They had the NBA best record in April at 10-1 (Detroit also went 10-1). The Mavs went 16-2 under Avery Johnson (officially, not including games where he filled in for Don Nelson). Almost no one predicted Dallas to do as well as they have done. 5 of their playoff rotation players are new to the team this season and Dallas lost MVP candidate Steve Nash for nothing during the off season. Add in that Dallas lost 99 key player-games due to injury (excluding Mbenga, Podkolzin, Dickau, and Abdul-Wahad), and it makes their 58-24 record even more impressive. The record is 4th best in the league. The NBA named Avery Johnson Western Coach of the Month for April. No question who the MVP for Dallas is. Dirk Nowitzki led the team in scoring in 59 games. He had a team high average 26.1 points, 4th best in the league and a career high. It is also the 2nd highest scoring average in team history (Mark Aguirre's 29.5 in 83-84 being the most). His 2,032 points were the 5th time a Mav had 2,000+ points in a season (Aguirre 3 times, Nowitzki in 02-03). Nowitzki also averaged 9.7 rebounds, which was 9th best in the league. His 661 defensive rebounds gave him a career total of 3,992 defensive rebounds, surpassing James Donaldson 3,293 defensive rebounds as a Mav for most defensive rebounds in a Mavs career. Nowitzki shot 615-708 FT and set the team record for most free throws attempt and made during a season (old: FTM 483, FTA 621). Dallas record in 04-05 20-3 when Nowitzki scored 30 or more points 16-0 when Nowitzki and Finley scored 20 or more points 33-7 when any 2 players scored 20 or more points 11-5 when Dampier had a double-double 7-1 when Terry had a 10 or more assists Dallas record in 04-05 22-0 when Dallas shot 50% or better 4-13 when Dallas shot 40% or worse 41-9 when Dallas scored 100 or more points 1-10 when Dallas scored less than 90 points 26-6 when Dallas had 45 or more rebounds 18-0 when Dallas had 25 or more assists Dallas record in 04-05 7-7 when the opponent shot 50% or better 19-0 when the opponent shot 40% or worse 18-16 when the opponent scored 100 or more points 22-1 when the opponent scored less than 90 points 14-19 when the opponent had 45 or more rebounds 11-6 when the opponent had 25 or more assists Dallas record in 04-05 46-2 when Dallas out-shot the opponent 12-22 when the opponent out-shot (or even with) Dallas 33-3 when Dallas out-rebounded the opponent 30-0 when Dallas out-assisted the opponent Houston also finished 04-05 strong with a 7 game winning streak. Tracy McGrady did not play in their last game due to back spasms - and they say that it was a legitimate injury, not just an excuse to rest him. Juwan Howard is out for the playoffs due to a viral infection in his heart. The infection has cleared, but doctors have ordered that he forgo physical activity for the next 4 to 6 months. The teams split the regular season series with each winning one at home and one on the road. The in-season games probably will have little reflection on how the teams perform against each other in the post-season as both made major changes to their team after the first 3 games occurred and the 4th game had Dallas missing 3 key players. 12/2/04 Dallas 113, Houston 106 OT at Dallas the epic Nowitzki (53 pts)-McGrady (48 pts) battle 12/11/04 Dallas 102, Houston 78 at Houston Nowitzki 22 pts, 14 reb; Finley 26 pts; McGrady 15 pts; Yao 13 pts 1/12/05 Houston 124, Dallas 114 at Dallas McGrady 30 pts; Juwan Howard 29 pts; Yao 20 pts; Nowitzki 28 pts; Stackhouse 26 pts; Josh Howard did not play 3/6/05 Houston 90, Dallas 69 at Houston McGrady 32 pts; Yao 14 pts; Terry 20 pts; Nowitzki, Finley, and Dampier did not play First Round Schedule vs Houston Game 1: Saturday, April 23 at 4:30 pm in Dallas on ESPN and channel 21 Game 2: Monday, April 25 at 8:30 pm in Dallas on TNT and channel 21 Game 3: Thursday, April 28 at 8:30 pm in Houston on TNT and channel 21 Game 4: Saturday, April 30 at 4:30 pm in Houston on TNT and channel 21 *Game 5: Monday, May 2 at TBD in Dallas on TBD *Game 6: Thursday, May 5 at TBD in Houston on TBD *Game 7: Saturday, May 7 at TBD in Dallas on TBD *if necessary Dallas at Memphis (April 20) The last game of the regular season came without much meaning to either team. The teams traded buckets to open the game and then the Mavs went on a 23-4 run to go up 25-6 with 3:40 remaining as Memphis committed 5 turnovers during the run. Memphis did score the last 4 points of the quarter. Dallas led 29-16 after 1. Josh Howard had 12 points. Stromile Swift converted a 3-point play to open the 2nd quarter and Dallas' lead hovered between 12 and 8 points over the next 11 minutes. Jerry Stackhouse nailed a 3-pointer and hit 2 free throws to give Dallas a 13-point lead with 2 seconds left, but Dallas made a big error and Memphis was able to make the full court length inbounds pass to Swift under the basket for the easy layup. Dallas led 55-41 at the half. Dallas shot 49% FG and Memphis shot 40.5% FG. Memphis opened the 3rd quarter with a 12-6 run to pull within 53-61 with 8:05 to go, but Dallas then went on a 10-2 run to go up 71-55 with 5:50 left and Dallas led in the teens the rest of the quarter. Memphis again got a bucket right before the quarter ended as Pau Gasol got a layup with a second left. Dallas led 86-71 after 3. Gasol had 10 points in the 3rd quarter. The starters sat most of the 4th quarter in this meaningless game and Dallas opened the 4th with a 6-1 run to take their first 20 point lead at 92-72 with 10 minutes remaining. Dallas took their largest lead at 100-76 with 6:10 to go on a dunk by Alan Henderson. Dallas won 108-88. Even though it was a meaningless game, it did not feel that way until midway through the 3rd quarter. Memphis struggled early, were able to come back, but then Dallas pulled away. Dallas shot well throughout, thanks in part to the hot hand of Josh Howard, and finished shooting 52.1% (38-73) FG including 4-11 3-pointers. Dallas was real generous in sharing the ball as all but 7 of their field goals came off of assists. 31 assists was the 2nd highest assist total of the season. Memphis shot 44.9% (31-69) FG including 2-14 3-pointers. They did not do a good job of sharing the ball as they only had 16 assists and no player had more than 3 assists. From the line, Dallas shot 28-33 FT and Memphis shot 24-28 FT. Dallas out-rebounded Memphis 42-27 including 13-9 offensive - and the Mavs took advantage of those offensive rebounds as Dallas had 20 2nd chances points while Memphis had just 6 2nd chance points. Dallas dominated Memphis this season in winning all 4 games by an average of 19.5 points (24, 13, 21, 20). With the blowout and being the last game of the season that was meaningless in the standings, no Mav played more than 28 minutes (and none played less than 11 minutes). Josh Howard had a stellar game with 27 points including 11-14 FG [and 1 of the misses was on a forced shot when he got the ball right before the shot clock expired] and 6 rebounds in 26 minutes. He did tweak his ankle during the 3rd quarter and sat the 4th quarter, but is expected to be ready for Satuday's game. Dirk Nowitzki had 16 points on 3-11 FG and 10-12 FT, 8 rebounds, and 5 assists in 26 minutes. Jerry Stackhouse had 13 points and 3 rebounds in 18 minutes. Michael Finley had 11 points, 2 rebounds, and 3 assists in 21 minutes. Jason Terry had 5 points and 6 assists [including 4 in the 1st quarter as he was looking to pass and he only attempted 1 shot in the 1st] in 25 minutes. Erick Dampier had 6 points and 7 rebounds in 26 minutes. Keith Van Horn had 10 points including 4-5 FG, 2 rebounds, and 3 assists. Marquis Daniels only had 2 points on 1-4 FG, but continued doing a good job in sharing the ball with 6 assists in his 22 minutes. Darrell Armstrong had an exciting come-from-behind leaping block to save 2 points on a Memphis break. Memphis also spread the minutes with no player getting more than 29 minutes. Pau Gasol had 18 points including 8-9 FG and 4 rebounds. Mike Miller had 12 points, 3 rebounds, and 3 assists. Bonzi Wells had 13 points. James Posey had 12 points including 3-10 FG and 4 rebounds including 3 offensive. Stromile Swift had 11 points including 4-12 FG and 4 rebounds including 3 offensive. Earl Watson had 9 points and Lorenzen Wright had 7 points and 9 rebounds. Quotes Avery Johnson: "The regular season is over. We had a lot of fighting through injuries, a Hall of Fame coach retiring, a lot of new guys, and guys who hadn't ever been a part of a winning program. We just have guys that don't like to lose. They caught the winning bug. During this last stretch we have played pretty good games against good teams. There have been stretches during this run though that has made us be humble about some things. We aren't a perfect team. We have a lot to work on before starting Saturday. We can hone in on one team and play good basketball." Johnson: "For us to be sitting where we are right now is testimony to the character we have and the fiber we have on this team. These guys don't blink at stuff like that. Their expectations are really high. Mine are. They hate losing." Johnson on defense: "We've always had an emphasis on defense. I think now we are just emphasizing it in different ways with different personnel. We just stress the intangibles on defense that are important to us." Johnson on the playoffs: "There's no time to be tired now. It's win or go home." Dirk Nowitzki on the 9 game winning streak: "We got hot at the right time, and now we are on the same page, ready for the playoffs." Nowitzki: "It was a pretty good year. We had injury problems with Dampier out, we had Finley out the first month, Marquis battled injuries all year, and Stackhouse was in and out. The guys who were there all year stepped up big. We got hot at the right time and now we are on the same page, ready for the playoffs." Nowitzki: "I feel pretty good about Houston. They have good size and outside shooting. They will be a very tough matchup. They are hot and we are hot so it will be a fun series. We will have the home court advantage but it should be a really fun series." Nowitzki on the playoffs: "There's nothing new to hide. They saw us for 80 games. It's not like they're going to watch [the Memphis game] and say, 'Oh, they're doing this and that.' They know what we're doing, and we're going to get prepared for what they're doing. And then it comes down to being tough in the playoffs and executing plays. Even though we know their plays and they know ours, it comes down to who comes out on top and who is going to execute the plays the right way. We'll see what happens." Michael Finley: "Our confidence is at an all time high right now. Winning the way we've been winning these games is a testament to that." Josh Howard: "It was cool. We stuck to the script, and I was able to knock down my shots. Now, I know what my job will be." Howard: "I was able to knock down shots today. For the most part everything is looking up and we are playing good ball. Tonight was something we tried to do the last couple of games, which is get guys in and get everyone ready for the playoffs. We had some things to work on tonight and that went really well. Now we focus on Houston. They will be ready to play so we will have to be ready to play them." Howard on spreading the minutes: "We've been trying to do this the last couple of games. Guys have been playing hard all year, and tonight we were able to give guys breaks. Other guys were able to show coach they can play. We're ready for the playoffs. We've got 16 games to win. Hopefully we can win them all." Howard: "There is nothing wrong with our defense. We played well individually tonight and as a team. 16 games to win now. Hopefully we can win them all." Mike Fratello: "I thought Dallas played very well tonight. I was disappointed with the lack of effort on our part. Both teams really don't have anything to play for out there, but when you lose by 20, I don't see what you can get out of that. It is disappointing to end the regular season this way. Based on what we did tonight, there are 12 to 14 areas that we need to work on, I mean we need a training camp to get ready for Phoenix. The biggest thing between now and the Phoenix series is that we have to find a way to play with passion. That lies within each player, we have to play hard for 48 minutes every game now." Fratello: "In athletics, you have to have a passion for the game. No matter if you have something to play for or not, when the lights go on, you show up and play hard. That's what the game is supposed to be about. That comes down to each individual." Mike Miller: "It's tough. The last game at home, you want to bring energy. That's one thing that was disappointing. Our energy wasn't there. The one thing we've got to focus on when we come in here [for practice] is that it's a clean slate." Miller: "It's disappointing, but the one thing we've got to realize is that the slate is clean now. We've got to be ready to play. Phoenix is going to be a team that gets up and down the court and wants to score. We've got to learn it's time to go now." Bonzi Wells: "They came in here and just really spanked us on our home court, but luckily it doesn't really mean anything. We wanted to get this victory, and it's tough to go into the playoffs on a losing note. The fact is, we kind of did that last year and you saw what happened. It's going to be tough, but hopefully we can recover." Wells: "You can't just give games away, even if it doesn't matter. You've got to win as many games as you can and have momentum going into the playoffs. And right now, we don't have any." Wells on the playoffs: "Whatever happens, happens. We have to come out and give 110%. Phoenix is just a heck of a team. They have skill and position players. We always want to win games. Last year we lost 2 or 3 in a row and ended up getting swept out of the playoffs. Hopefully we can break that this year." Wells on Phoenix: "They are an up and down team the same way we are. Hopefully we can match up with them." Shane Battier: "I really don't have an answer for tonight. Dallas came in and set the tone early. We had bad turnovers in the beginning, and once we were down in the 1st quarter, I think everyone just packed it in." Jason Williams on the playoffs: "We've just got to come in tomorrow and get ready for the playoffs. We just have to get into the situation and see what comes of it." Williams on Phoenix: "We put our shorts on the same way they do. We just have to come out and try to win games. I think us as players just have to come out and play hard the next game." Dallas Mavericks 108, Memphis Grizzlies 88 at Memphis (April 20) 1st 2nd 3rd 4th - Final 2FG 3FG FG% FT% Dallas 29 26 31 22 - 108 .548 .364 .521 .848 Memphis 16 25 30 17 - 88 .527 .143 .449 .857 Halftime: Dallas 55-41 3rd Q: Dallas 86-71 Technicals: Michael Finley 3:10 3rd Refs: Bob Delaney, Leon Wood, Bill Kennedy Attendance: 16,512 (cap 18,119) Did not play due to injury: Brian Cardinal (left knee tendinitis) Dallas Mavericks REB Player MIN FGM-FGA 3PM-3PA FTM-FTA PTS O-T AST TO PF STL BLK Jason Terry 25 2-3 1-2 0-0 5 0-1 6 1 2 2 0 Michael Finley 21 5-8 1-2 0-0 11 0-2 3 0 1 0 0 Josh Howard 28 11-14 1-2 4-5 27 2-6 1 1 2 1 0 Dirk Nowitzki 26 3-11 0-0 10-12 16 2-8 5 1 2 1 0 Erick Dampier 26 1-3 0-0 4-6 6 3-7 2 2 2 0 2 Marquis Daniels 22 1-4 0-1 0-0 2 0-2 6 2 4 1 0 Alan Henderson 18 2-7 0-0 0-0 4 3-5 1 0 1 0 0 Jerry Stackhouse 18 5-9 1-2 2-2 13 1-3 0 1 3 1 0 Darrell Armstrong 16 0-2 0-1 2-2 2 0-1 2 1 1 2 1 Keith Van_Horn 15 4-5 0-1 2-2 10 0-2 3 2 2 0 0 Devin Harris 14 2-4 0-0 4-4 8 0-2 1 0 2 0 0 Shawn Bradley 11 2-3 0-0 0-0 4 2-3 1 1 1 1 0 Totals 48 38-73 4-11 28-33 108 13-42 31 14 23 9 3 Memphis Grizzlies REB Player MIN FGM-FGA 3PM-3PA FTM-FTA PTS O-T AST TO PF STL BLK Mike Miller 24 5-9 1-3 1-1 12 0-3 3 0 1 2 0 Jason Williams 21 1-3 0-2 0-0 2 0-0 2 2 0 0 0 Pau Gasol 25 8-9 0-0 2-2 18 2-4 2 2 2 0 0 Shane Battier 21 0-1 0-0 2-2 2 0-1 2 0 4 0 2 Lorenzen Wright 26 3-8 0-0 1-2 7 1-9 2 1 2 0 1 Bonzi Wells 29 4-7 0-1 5-6 13 0-0 1 2 4 0 1 Stromile Swift 28 4-12 0-0 3-3 11 3-4 1 2 5 1 1 James Posey 26 3-10 0-4 6-6 12 3-4 1 0 2 1 0 Earl Watson 20 2-6 1-3 4-6 9 0-2 0 3 0 1 0 Dahntay Jones 13 0-3 0-1 0-0 0 0-0 0 2 2 0 1 Antonio Burks 7 1-1 0-0 0-0 2 0-0 2 0 0 2 0 Totals 48 31-69 2-14 24-28 88 9-27 16 15 22 7 6 patricia Go Mavs!