Game 6: Dallas at Houston (May 5) The game was tied or Dallas held small leads in the 1st quarter. The game was tied 17-17 with 3:15 to go and Dallas closed the quarter with a 9-1 run, including 7 points by Jerry Stackhouse, to go up 26-18 after 1. Tracy McGrady had 10 points in the quarter. Stackhouse opened the 2nd quarter with a jumper to give Dallas their largest lead, but Houston then went on a 12-2 run to tie the game at 30-30 with 8:35 left. Stackhouse did score the next 5 points [and hit his first 6 shots of the game], but then Houston scored the next 6 points to take their first lead at 36-35 with 5:40 remaining. The teams traded a couple of leads and Houston led 42-41 with 2:50 to go. The Rockets then went on a 10-1 run, capped by a rare 4-point play by McGrady, to go up 52-42 with 30 seconds left. A 3-pointer by Jason Terry capped the scoring for the half. Houston led 52-45 at the half. Mike James had 13 points in the 2nd quarter. Houston shot 13-21 FG in out-scoring Dallas 34-19 in the 2nd quarter. For the half, Houston shot 53% FG and Dallas shot 47% FG. The teams traded buckets in the first minute of the 3rd quarter and Houston led 54-47 with 10:50 remaining. Dallas then went on a 10-3 run to tie the game at 57-57 with 7:55 to go. But Dallas could not re-take the lead and Houston led 68-63 with 4:35 left. Neither team scored over the next 2 1/2 minutes. Dallas then closed the quarter with a 7-1 run, capped by a 3-pointer by Michael Finley, to go up 70-69 after 3. Finley had 10 points in the 3rd quarter. Dallas out-scored Houston 25-17 in the 3rd quarter as Houston shot 6-18 FG in the quarter. The teams traded buckets early in the 4th quarter and Dallas led 72-71 with 10:40 to go. McGrady hit a 3-pointer, Jon Barry hit 2 free throws, and Barry drained consecutive 3-pointers to put Houston up 82-72 with 8:35 remaining. Dallas responded by scoring the next 8 points to pull within 80-82 with 7:20 left. The bottom then dropped out for the Mavs as they went _ice_ cold from the field in not connecting on a field goal the rest of the _game_ - a string of 17 straight misses. In fact, Dallas would not score again until 37 seconds left in the game on free throws. Houston took full advantage of Dallas' dismal offensive production and the Rockets put the game away with 19 straight points to go up 101-80 with 43 seconds remaining. 3 free throws by Devin Harris (fouled on a 3-point attempt) capped the scoring. Houston won 101-83. Yuch. What a terrible, terrible 4th quarter performance by Dallas. A 6:43 drought in the key quarter will kill you, and it did. Houston out-scored Dallas 32-13 in the 4th as Houston shot 9-16 FG including 5-8 3-pointers and Dallas shot 4-27 FG including 1-12 3-pointers. It was actually a game of quarters as Dallas played well in the 1st and 3rd quarters and played poorly in the 2nd and 4th quarters while Houston did the opposite. Houston simply had the better last quarter - and Dallas disappeared for the last quarter, where it had been stepping up in the 4th quarter in the previous 3 games that had won them those games. For the game, Houston shot 48.6% (36-74) including 9-17 3-pointers. Dallas shot 36% (31-86) FG including 7-26 3-pointers. Houston had the edge at the line in shooting 20-25 FT while Dallas shot 14-17 FT. The rebounds were even with each team having 43 rebounds and Dallas had the offensive board edge at 14-9. Houston did a better job of sharing the ball as they had 21 assists and Dallas had just 14 assists. The series is now tied 3-3 and goes to a do-or-die game 7 Saturday in Dallas at 8:30 pm. As he has been the entire series, Tracy McGrady was a stud. He had a series high 37 points including 6-10 3-pointers [tying the Dallas opponent record for makes and attempts] to go with 8 rebounds and 7 assists. This game, Houston didn't get much for Yao Ming - in fact, he did not play in the 4th quarter as Dikembe Mutombo was playing so well. Yao had 8 points on 3-8 FG and 2-6 FT, 5 rebounds, 2 blocks, and 3 steals in 27 minutes - it was coach's decision that limited his minutes in this game, not foul trouble as he had just 3 fouls. Mutombo a was defensive and rebounding force with 3 blocked shots and 5 rebounds in the 4th quarter. He finished with 2 points on 1-2 FG, 10 rebounds, and 4 blocks in 18 minutes [give me a break though as he wasn't called for a single foul]. Mike James again hurt the Mavs off the bench with 22 points including 7-11 FG. He also had 4 rebounds in his 28 minutes. Jon Barry came alive in the 4th quarter where he scored 12 of his 14 points. He also had 5 rebounds in his 30 minutes. McGrady, James, and Barry were the only Rockets in double-digits scoring. Wesley had 6 points including 2-6 FG, 3 rebounds, and 5 assists. Bob Sura missed all 3 shots he attempted and did not score in 21 minutes, but had 4 rebounds. And Ryan Bowen had 7 points including 3-4 FG and 2 rebounds in 13 minutes. Dallas also only had 3 players in double-digits. The Mavs are still waiting for Dirk Nowitzki to have a good offensive game in this series. He's got one more chance and hopefully he will finally show up. He has at least finally solved his rebounding woes that plagued him over the first 4 games, but it is time for him to step up offensively. Nowitzki had 19 points including 5-22 FG [and 1-8 FG in the 4th quarter], 13 rebounds, 4 assists, and 5 blocks in 44 minutes. Jerry Stackhouse played well in the 1st half where he scored 14 of his 21 points. He hit his first 6 shots, but then shot 3-10 the rest of the game. Stack also had 4 rebounds and 3 turnovers in his 31 minutes off the bench. Michael Finley had 14 points on 6-16 FG and 2-9 3-pointers and a bunch of 3s - 3 rebounds, 3 assists, 3 steals, and 3 fouls in his 40 minutes. He missed all 4 shots he attempted in the 4th quarter. Jason Terry's offense never got going as he had 7 points on 3-12 FG and 1-5 3-pointers, including 0-5 FG in the 2nd half. He also had 3 rebounds and 4 assists in 37 minutes. The road continued to be cruel to Josh Howard as he had 8 points and 3 rebounds in 22 foul plagued minutes - he fouled out midway through the 4th quarter. Erick Dampier also had foul troubles and fouled out with 3:30 left in the game and played just 28 minutes. He had 8 points on 4-4 FG and 9 rebounds including 5 offensive. Marquis Daniels had 3 points including 1-6 FG and 5 rebounds in 15 minutes. Devin Harris helped the Rockets with 2 sloppy turnovers (with pressure by Mike James) early in the 2nd quarter and didn't see the light of day again until garbage time. As such, Darrell Armstrong provided backup point guard minutes and played 10 minutes (missed both shots he attempted) in playing on in his 2nd game of the series [played a minute in game 3]. Quotes [Van Gundy's, McGrady's, James', Johnson's and Nowitzki's quotes transcribed by me] Jeff Van Gundy on the 4th quarter: "We made and they missed." Van Gundy on the 4th quarter: "Dikembe played a great final quarter, obviously. But this game is about making or missing. I thought we probably did something a little bit better and they probably missed some shots that they could have made." Van Gundy on if previous 4th quarters helped: "I don't think that's what happened. I think we played pretty well, but I don't think that was in response to not playing well before. I think we struggled in both the 1st and 3rd and they struggled in both the 2nd and 4th. Obviously we're happy we get to play in a final game and, you know, let it rip on Saturday and see where it takes us." Van Gundy on Yao, Barry, and James: "Obviously, normally I would have gone back to him in the 4th, but I thought that group was working well together. Before Saturday, we got to try to get his free throws straighten out. Obviously we're going to need to make on those attempts. That's what being a team's all about - some nights some guys are going well, other nights other guys are going well and pick each other up. I thought our guys did a good job of that tonight." Van Gundy on Mutombo: "Yeah, he had a great night tonight. Protected the basket, rebounded the ball. He really did a tremendous job tonight. So, very proud of him." Van Gundy on game 7: "I'm not sure that much changes, except it's the first time both teams have a must win situation. So playing on the road in those situations, obviously you'd rather have the home game, but what you need to do is be within striking distance with 6 to go, give yourself the opportunity to win it. And you do that with poise and discipline and trust and belief. It's troubling, we're really having trouble starting the game and we're really having trouble starting the 3rd quarter and I'm not sure we can get away with what we got away with tonight in both of those starts." Tracy McGrady: "We won. that's all that really matters. But I had a little help tonight, I had some guys that stepped up big for me. And we played with a sense of urgency tonight. You know, it was either win or go home. And we definitely don't want to go home right now. So we came out and we played big." McGrady on Yao: "I was trying to tell him to keep his head up, keep his head in the game. It was a couple of passes that I threw to him that he fumbled a little bit. And then he was struggling at the free throw line. I think mentally he was kind of struggling a little bit. But I told him to keep his head up and we was going to make it happen for him." McGrady on game 7: "Just knowing that I've been in the situation before. And just going to lay everything out on the line, leave everything out on that basketball court. And I'm going to bring my teammates with me. And hope for the best. That's all I can do, man." McGrady on the bench: "That will help if we can get some guys coming in off the bench and we can shut those guys - like Jerry Stackhouse coming in the game, he's playing huge for them. So if we can kind of shut him down, we'll get ourselves a chance to win." McGrady on the 4th quarter: "Defense. Defense. You know, we really buckled down on the defensive end. Made those guys take a lot of tough shots, made them take a lot of shots from the outside. And we had the big dog down there tonight protecting our house. Dikembe, unbelievable, man. I can't really say enough about, you know, what he brought to the table tonight. He and Ryan, just great energy. And on the offensive side, Mike James was huge for us. Jon Barry was huge for us. If those guys can continue to play like that, it will be tough to beat us. These guys brought a lot of energy tonight." McGrady on Van Gundy asking him to do more: "I accepted the challenge. He was just asking me to defend Dirk - already that's a tough matchup. He's 7-foot and the guy can just shoot right over me. And he kind of wears me down, putting me on the post and just banging with him. And just bring it on the offensive end as well. Getting guys involved, making plays when plays needed to be made, and just scoring. And being that presence right away. Just leading this team. I accepted that challenge and hopefully I didn't disappoint him tonight." McGrady on the 4th quarter when Dallas pulled with 2 points: "Oh yeah, it was definitely said. Jon Barry mentioned out on the basketball court that, you know, we've been in this situation before and we didn't want to have any let downs. So you know, we played like we were down. We kept attacking, attacking. We was in attack mode throughout the whole 4th quarter. It helps when guys are making shots. You know, it just boosts your confidence and it carries over on the defensive end as well. Everybody has energy, everybody is scrambling for loose balls, and that's what it's going to take." McGrady on Barry and James in the lineup: "Well I think what makes it good for us, because you have a scorer in Mike James, he has a scorer's mentality, and Jon Barry, a guy who can shoot the ball from outside. So when I penetrate, I rely on Jon to get his spots and knock down those open jumpers for me. And Mike James takes some of the pressure off of me because he can make plays when those guys kind of take the ball out of my hands. Mike James makes plays coming off pick-and-rolls, going to the hole, creating fouls, and he did a great job tonight of attacking the basket." McGrady on the difference now than 2 years ago, if he can trust his teammates more: "You just answered my question. It's just all about trusting my teammates. You know, just believing in them. I think before, a lot of times in the 4th quarter, I don't be so passive and don't rely on pick-and-rolls and if I see one of my guys open, passing the ball. I kind of take things upon myself. So just now, just playing with a group, a great supporting cast that I really believe in and I know it's going to take those guys to win ball games. And I just have a lot of trust in them." McGrady on game 7: "You know what, this is what you really play basketball for and really enjoy. Because in a tight series like this where every game is going down to the wire, you have possibly 1 of the 2 teams that could come out of the West. And when you take a series like this to game 7, you have to be ready for this, you have to enjoy this. This is great basketball. I think all of our games has by far been just unbelievable basketball to watch. And you know, you have 2 teams that's just going out there and competing at a high level night in and night out. Game 7, man, hopefully we can make it a classic game and we definitely [are] shooting to come out of it." McGrady on visitors not winning game 7s: "Well, that what the percentages say, so we're not going to go by that." McGrady if his offense felt best in game 6: "Yeah, I had it rolling from the outside. When I got that jumper going like that, it opens up everything else. When I'm shooting the 3 as well as I did tonight, I feel like I can shoot it from any where on the basketball court and pretty much my defender is at my mercy 'cause I'll pull up at any given time. And when you're playing a guy such as myself and he's playing with confidence like that, there is nothing you can really do but hope that he misses shots and tonight I was making shots." Yao Ming: "I didn't play very well today. I had a lot of turnovers that I shouldn't have had and my free throws were very poor. I am going to go back and look at the tape and see what the problems are. You can't solve everything through the tape, but with that being said, I'm not going to have a good game next game just because I had a bad game this game. I'm going to have a good game if I can go and figure out the problems that I had and fix them." Yao: "We just need to focus on what we did well tonight and think about the 7th game." Yao: "The turning point was in the 4th quarter when we were able to bring it together and play really great team defense." Mike James on his 1st half play: "In the beginning, I just wanted to give a defensive spark and then the baskets started coming. I knew that if I just stayed aggressive, just on both ends of the court, hopefully I just want - my main goal just was to play inspired basketball tonight. And I just wanted my energy to feed off on to everyone else." James on the 4th quarter lineup: "Jon is a great shooter. Sometimes we put him at the 4 and it hurts us sometimes on the rebounding end, but he's also a threat because he's such a good shooter. Now we take Dirk out of the paint and he has to like, no one really, it's hard to rotate to him. And tonight we was knocking down his shots. It just opened up everything else for everyone else." James on his success: "I just think I'm being aggressive. I think for 48 - when ever I'm on the court, I'm just trying to be aggressive. And you know, it's hard to adjust to a person when they're constantly attacking. And so my main thing is if I see a big man, I'm going to try to attack the big man and if I come off a screen I'm not playing in the back of my head. I'm constantly trying to attack the big man and just try to open up things, not just for myself, but for my teammates also." James on Dallas pulling withing 2 in the 4th and then his layup: "I'm not thinking about the score. I'm not thinking about the time. I'm just thinking about, when I'm out on the court I just want to play inspired basketball now. I understand what's at stake right now. If we lose, we're going home. And so we all understand that and when we step out on the court, we're just going to just continue to play aggressive, just try to play hard for 48 minutes." James on McGrady: "Tracy and I, we talk a lot during the game. He's our superstar and we ride him. Everyone jumps on his back. And sometimes the thing is, when everyone jumps on his back, we have to give him help. A lot of times he may have great quarters, but once he gets tired and no one steps in and gives him a little help, that's when, you know, all the load's on him. So we try to help him with the load. And that's what we have to do for 48 minutes when he's in the game. We know he's going to lead us, but everyone has to chip in." James: "Just being aggressive, just being aggressive. When I step out on the court, I just want to be aggressive. And so that's my main thing. Not just offensively, but defensively. I want to pick up the ball aggressively and I want to attack the rim aggressively on offense." James on past experience on having been down 3-2: "Of course, when we played against Jersey [when he was with Detroit], that was the turning point. Everyone thought we was going to lose that series. Winning the first 2 games and then losing the next 3. And then it's so much similar. That was the 2nd round, this is the 1st round. But the teams remind me so much of each other. But it's about will. How bad do you want it right now? We're going into Dallas on Saturday. We understand. They know what's at stake, we know what's at stake. It's a game 7 and it's who ever wants it the most." James on the bench: "We're just doing our job. This is what coach wants us to do. When we step on the court, he expects this from us. Not just scoring, but just hard work. You know, Ryan is a hard worker, Jon is a hard worker, myself. And we're the working bees. You know, we're the ones that have to clean up all the mess. And that's what we have to do when we step out on the court. And if we have big games, we're not doing anything special. We're doing what we're supposed to do on the court." James on game 7: "They always say history is made to be broken and so we understand. We know what's at stake. We understand what we have to do. We have to go out in Dallas and we've had success in the past in Dallas. And so we're going to go out there and for 48 minutes we're going to play hard and we're going to play inspired basketball." James on game 7: "Well, knowing what's at stake. Knowing that if we lose, we go home. Knowing if guys are ready to go fishing, then they need to put their little fishing hats on, their little fishing gear. But if you want to play, we know what we want to do in the future and also in the post season, we have a goal. And everyone on this team has a dream and that's trying to win a World Championship. And that's every team in the playoffs goal this year, but if we really believe that in our hearts, we have to go out there on Saturday and play hard ball, hard basketball for 48 minutes." James on Yao: "I don't think he's upset by sitting out the whole 4th quarter. I think he's probably upset about the free throws he probably missed. You know, he went 3-8 and he's been shooting like what 70% this whole series. And I think this is going to inspire him to come out Saturday and have a better game. And I think not just sitting out angry. I think it's more sitting out angry about his play. And that's going to inspire him I believe to come out harder on Saturday." David Wesley: "For us to come with our backs against the wall, and to come out with a gutsy win is a lot of fun. We played a good game, and we played well enough to win. Now we have a game 7." Wesley: "It's funny to look up at the clock, and for the 3rd game in a row you see 87 or 88 to 82. We were determined not to have the same results. We had a lot better focus down the stretch, and we had better execution on offense. We got baskets, and we kept playing good defense throughout stretches of the game. It was a good win." Jon Barry: "Thankfully, we have 2 more days at the office. We're just happy to get a chance to get a Game 7. It was a tremendous effort tonight. We did a lot of great things and we showed great energy and focus on the defensive end especially. [We played] a lot better than we've been and we're playing again Saturday and that's all that you can ask - the ultimate game." Barry on the 4th quarter: "They're a resilient team. They're very good, but so are we. I just said, 'You know what, we've been here. It's not going to happen this time. We have to lock down.' And I believe they made a run right away." Barry on Mutombo: "I thought Dikembe was great. He rebounded the ball. I don't know how many blocks he had - it seemed like 4 or 5. He was just a force on the defensive end like he's been for the last 27 years." Barry on game 7: "Like I said, this is the ultimate game. I think we've got some guys who probably have never played in a Game 7 in this room and there's nothing quite like it. It's hard to explain how intense and emotional it is." Barry on game 7: "We deserve to be there. We believe that. It's going to be a hell of a, hell of a game." Dikembe Mutombo: "I slept very good last night and I woke up with the thinking that the sky is the limit. Why can't we do it? I came out this morning and I told my teammates, 'We are going to Dallas no matter what.' We did very well this game." Mutombo: "I had a good night's sleep last night, and when I came here, I just felt we were going to win. I'm not ready to go home." Mutombo: "They made a good run there in the end, and also in the beginning of the 4th quarter. We had to make sure we didn't celebrate too early. Today, when we had the lead late, we made sure we kept the lead secure." Avery Johnson: "Well obviously we couldn't score in the 4th. We had been playing pretty good in the 4th offensively and defensively, but we couldn't get anything going. We had a pretty good 3rd quarter, pretty good start to the game, but it was a tale of, you know, every other quarter. We played good in the 1st, they played good in the 2nd, we played pretty good in the 3rd, they played pretty good in the 4th. So I guess it's a tale of every other quarter." Johnson: "You know, we haven't been able to answer Mike James pretty much the whole series. And we'll pay more attention to him in game 7. He's been causing us problems. We got to take the challenge of doing a better job on him. But again, our defense is not where it's supposed to be. I think our guys came in with a satisfied attitude and it was just unacceptable." Johnson on if the attitude surprised him: "You know what, you want me to tell you the truth? A lot of things surprise me. You know what's one of the things that surprise me - here a team is in an 0-2 hole, all right, everybody has this team written off when they're down 0-2. They come back and win 3 in a row and you don't even hear anything about how the Mavericks won 3 in a row games. The talk is about other stuff. Maybe I need to, did somebody, maybe I need to go crazy. You know, maybe that will help. You know, maybe I need to go crazy and then you won't talk about game 6, who won game 6, but maybe you'll talk about how the coach went crazy. Maybe that needs to happen. The game, this series is about basketball, that's what the series is about." Johnson: "No, no. We lost the game. We didn't play well enough to win the game. We don't make excuses. Okay, we don't make excuses. We lost the game. You know, the game was called fairly, pretty much. That's the way it is. So we lost, we're getting on the plane, we're going back home, and we're going to get ready for game 7. No excuses. No complaining. No nothing." Johnson on if the Rockets were complaining and making excuses: "You tell me. You read the Houston Chronicle. Were they covering the game? Or were they covering stuff outside the game?" Johnson: "All I'm saying, Bob, is just this: this is a great series. If you win, take your medicine. If you lose, take whatever it is. That's the way I - all of the teams I've been on - you win, you win; you lose, you lose. But it's all about basketball. This thing is about the NBA, all right. It's not about no one person or no one player. This game is global, all right. They got people all over the world watching this game. That's what this game is about. that's what the game is - it's about the NBA. It's about a series with the 4 and the 5 seed, 2 Texas teams playing great basketball. One team's down 0-2, comeback win 3 in a row, another comes back and wins, now it's tied 3-3. That's what it's all about." Dirk Nowitzki: "Just Offensively, we just didn't play well enough as a team. I mean, we shot 36%. That's not going to cut it if we want to win on the road. And we were right there in the 3rd, we were still up by 1. Just in the 4th, we got cold, didn't execute the way we wanted to and the way we did in the last 3 games to win it. Just wasn't enough. The 4th quarter was really what got us the 3-2 lead in the series and today they tied it. Hopefully it will be better Saturday." Nowitzki on the 4th quarter: "Like I said, we were right there. Even with a couple of minutes left, I mean, we were 7 or 8 points and we were there in game 3 and game 4, we were down a couple of points with 5, 6 minutes left and we still executed and won those 2 big games. So I thought we were right there, even though in the 4th we weren't really playing great. But down a couple of points with the team we have, with the explosiveness and with the shot making ability we have, that's nothing. So but then we just kept on being cold and it wasn't enough." Nowitzki: "I didn't really shoot the ball well all series long. They're doing a good job on me. I got to figure out a way to shoot the ball a little better if we want to win game 7. 5-22 is pretty bad, but I drove the ball a lot of times, the ball went in-and-out. Had a couple good looks at jumpers that went in-and-out. And, you know, tried to play hard. And got to do better Saturday if you want to win." Nowitzki on game 7 being in Dallas: "I always think it's a huge advantage to have a game 7 at home. I mean, we've been here 2 years ago in the playoffs. We beat Portland in game 7. We beat Sacramento in game 7 at home. That's what you work for all season long is that home court advantage in the 7th game. Especially the last couple of weeks, we worked really hard to get that 4th seed. Hopefully it will do us a bit of good." Nowitzki: "We knew McGrady was going to come out and shoot the ball extremely well. We expected him, really, to have 40. But I thought it was Jon Barry's shot making, it was Mike James coming out really aggressive, shooting the ball extremely well. Dikembe in the 4th really changing the game with a lot of shot blocking and just clogging up the middle. And that's what he does. Over his whole career, he's been so good at it. I thought those 3 guys were a major key for them winning. Like I said, we knew Tracy's going to have a great game." Michael Finley: "Our team is very confident. We know we didn't play a good game. If we'd played great and lost, that would have an affect on us. But to play like this, we know we'll play better." Jerry Stackhouse: "We didn't play badly but none of the breaks went our way. They played a great game and you have to shake their hand and go back to Dallas. We had a lot of breakdown plays that allowed Houston drives to the basket and that way a key. On the 7th game, we worked all season to put ourselves in this position [home court advantage] and now we have one finale to see who moves on." Stackhouse: "They played great and beat us, just like the last 3 games when we played pretty well and won. It was a hostile environment, and we knew the odds were probably against us. We took one on the chin, and we'll move on. It'll be much better to be at home than in this environment for Game 7." Stackhouse: "We had some lapses, and we got sucked in a few times." Stackhouse on defense: "We're going to concede that Tracy and Yao will get their points off the pick-and-roll. We have home court advantage and now we will see what happens." Stackhouse on the series: "Obviously when 2 teams play as much as we have things are going to get a little testy on the court. We'll see who wants it the most now." Stackhouse: "It was like there were phantoms out there fouling. Normally you know who fouls. But tonight we were looking around trying to figure out who they called it on. Maybe everyone wanted to see a Game 7." Stackhouse: "The game was called a little bit differently than it was in the past. You've got guys running in here throwing up shots later in the shot clock, getting whistles blown to go to the free throw line. It was like phantom, 'Who fouled them?'" Stackhouse on Barry: "He was wide open and he made his shots. Everything he got was off garbage plays." Jason Terry on game 7: "We must come out and set the tempo and bring the energy. It's game 7 and we have to be ready. We know what's at stake." Terry: "Houston got stops in the 4th quarter and we didn't. And that is what it came down to. We let their role players go off and that is what killed us. We know what we have to do and now we just have to do it." Terry on the 4th quarter: "They executed their plays and they got stops at the defensive end. That's what wins games for you down the stretch. We didn't execute. We had breakdowns. We didn't make the defensive stops. So we lost." Josh Howard: "Houston went on a fantastic run and their role players made big shots. They went on an awesome run and we couldn't respond." Howard on shooting 0-17 FG to end the game: "I can't remember missing that many shots since we came to training camp. Game 7 will be big and we have to be ready to win for our fans." Howard: "It was a game we could have won. Our shots didn't fall and now we have to go back to Dallas and get a win. It seems like when we stop one of their key players, then one of their role players has stepped up big." Howard on game 7: "We'll be ready. We know we are a good team and if we get the job done defensively, then we will get the win." Marquis Daniels: "They played some good defense down the stretch. It is a matter of us executing down the stretch and making our shots. It was right there. A couple of plays here and there and the game could of been the other way." Daniels on re-grouping: "We just go back, hit the film, go over some things, make some minor adjustments, and just come out ready to play." Daniels on the difference in the game: "Executing down the stretch in the 4th. We've got to continue to shoot the ball well, and take care of the ball." Daniels on James and Barry: "We've got to try to limit their role guys as much as possible. It's tough enough to guard Tracy and Yao. Once we limit those guys I think we're better off doing what we need to do." Daniels on Dallas playing well with their backs against the wall: "That is a good question. It is just something that we just have to get it together on. Hopefully we can come out and put one together in Game 7. We have to play a good 48 minute game and hopefully we can put one together Saturday." Game 6: Houston Rockets 101, Dallas Mavericks 83 at Houston (May 5) 1st 2nd 3rd 4th - Final 2FG 3FG FG% FT% Houston 18 34 17 32 - 101 .474 .529 .486 .800 Dallas 26 19 25 13 - 83 .400 .269 .360 .824 Halftime: Houston 52-45 3rd Q: Dallas 70-69 Technicals: Dallas defensive 3 seconds 1:51 1st, Bob Sura 9:51 3rd, Jerry Stackhouse 1:12 3rd Refs: Sean Corbin, Joe Forte, Ed F. Rush Attendance: 18,215 (sellout) Did not play due to injury: Keith Van Horn (sprained left ankle) Houston Rockets REB Player MIN FGM-FGA 3PM-3PA FTM-FTA PTS O-T AST TO PF STL BLK David Wesley 43 2-6 0-1 2-2 6 0-3 5 1 4 1 0 Bob Sura 21 0-3 0-0 0-0 0 0-4 2 2 1 0 0 Tracy McGrady 42 14-28 6-10 3-3 37 2-8 7 2 3 1 1 Scott Padgett 17 2-5 1-3 0-0 5 1-2 1 0 1 0 0 Yao Ming 27 3-8 0-0 2-6 8 2-5 2 3 3 0 2 Jon Barry 30 4-7 2-2 4-4 14 1-5 1 3 2 0 0 Mike James 28 7-11 0-1 8-9 22 0-4 2 3 2 1 0 Dikembe Mutombo 18 1-2 0-0 0-0 2 2-10 0 1 0 0 4 Ryan Bowen 13 3-4 0-0 1-1 7 1-2 1 1 1 2 0 Moochie Norris 1 0-0 0-0 0-0 0 0-0 0 0 0 0 0 Totals 48 36-74 9-17 20-25 101 9-43 21 16 17 5 7 Dallas Mavericks REB Player MIN FGM-FGA 3PM-3PA FTM-FTA PTS O-T AST TO PF STL BLK Michael Finley 40 6-16 2-9 0-0 14 1-3 3 0 3 3 0 Jason Terry 37 3-12 1-5 0-0 7 2-3 4 1 0 2 0 Dirk Nowitzki 44 5-22 2-6 7-9 19 0-13 4 2 4 1 5 Josh Howard 22 3-8 0-0 2-2 8 1-3 0 2 6 0 0 Erick Dampier 28 4-4 0-0 0-0 8 5-9 1 1 6 1 0 Jerry Stackhouse 31 9-16 2-3 1-1 21 2-4 2 3 1 1 0 Marquis Daniels 15 1-6 0-2 1-2 3 2-5 0 0 1 0 1 Darrell Armstrong 10 0-2 0-1 0-0 0 1-1 0 0 0 1 0 Devin Harris 6 0-0 0-0 3-3 3 0-1 0 2 1 0 0 Alan Henderson 5 0-0 0-0 0-0 0 0-1 0 0 1 0 0 Shawn Bradley 2 0-0 0-0 0-0 0 0-0 0 0 0 0 0 Totals 48 31-86 7-26 14-17 83 14-43 14 12 23 9 6 patricia Go Mavs!