Dallas at Utah (January 9) It was a tough matchup of 2 of the top teams in the league and it ended up being a very good game. Josh Howard scored 5 straight points to give Dallas a 7-2 lead. Utah was able to pull within 1 point a few times, but was unable to tie the game or go ahead. 6 straight points by Jerry Stackhouse gave Dallas a 26-19 lead with 2:15 left. Neither team scored over the next minute. After a jumper by Mehmet Okur, Stackhouse threw an elbow trying to create space and clipped Matt Harpring in the chin and the refs incorrectly called a flagrant foul level 1. I say incorrectly because it should have been a level 2 and Stackhouse should have been immediately ejected - the rules are black-and-white: an elbow that connects above the shoulders is an automatic ejection. Utah coach Jerry Sloan then had words with Stackhouse and Stackhouse had words back. The refs then again errored in calling a technical on Stackhouse for the talking - how can you call a technical on just one when both were talking to people they shouldn't have been talking to? Utah hit all 3 free throws to cap the quarter scoring. Dallas led 26-24 after 1. Howard had 11 points in the quarter. Utah shot 14-16 FT and Dallas shot 3-4 FT. Utah scored the first 6 points of the 2nd quarter to take their first lead at 30-26 with 10:40 left. 2 free throws by Dirk Nowitzki ended Dallas' 3:50 scoring drought, but Utah scored the next 5 points to go up 35-28 with 9:35 to go. A jumper by Nowitzki with 8:50 remaining ended Dallas' 5 1/2 field goal drought and the game stayed close with Utah unable to build a lead larger than 6 points. 4 straight points by Howard pulled Dallas within 45-47 with 2:40 to go, but Dallas again went through a scoring drought and did not score again in the quarter. Utah scored the last 6 points of the quarter to go up 53-45 at the half. Carlos Boozer had 10 points in the 2nd quarter. Utah out-scored Dallas 29-19 in the 2nd quarter. The turnovers were high for both teams as Utah had 11 turnovers and Dallas had 14 turnovers in the half. Avery Johnson picked up a technical foul for not doing much early in the 3rd quarter and Okur hit the free throw to give Utah a 9 point lead. Dallas then went on a 9-2 run to pull within 54-56 with 9 minutes to go. Gordan Giricek ended the run with a 3-pointer and Utah was able to hang on to a single-digit lead. Dallas scored 6 straight points to take a 73-72 lead with 3:05 left. The lead would see-saw back and forth over the rest of the quarter. Stackhouse was called for a questionable flagrant foul with 7 seconds left and was ejected as it was his 2nd flagrant [but as I said above, he should have been ejected earlier - he only scored 2 points after getting the first flagrant]. Jarron Collins hit 1-2 FT for the flagrant and Deron Williams hit a jumper near the quarter's end to give Utah an 82-81 lead after 3. The game continued to stay close and it was a tough battle to the end. Utah held a small lead early in the 4th quarter. Jason Terry hit a jumper and followed that up with a 3-pointer to give Dallas a, 89-88 lead with 8:05 left, but Andrei Kirilenko answered with a 3-pointer 20 seconds later. Derek Fisher hit a 3-pointer to give Utah a 94-91 lead with 6:30 remaining. The teams traded 2 points and a layup by Devin Harris and jumper by Howard gave Dallas a 97-96 lead with 4:45 to go. The teams traded 1-2 FT and Harris hit 2 free throws to put Dallas up 100-97 with 3 minutes remaining. Utah missed on 2 attempts and Terry was fouled on the rebound. He hit both free throws to give Dallas a 5-point lead with 2:35 left. It became a game of punch and counter-punch as Utah would score and Dallas would answer as both teams scored 4 points in the next minute. Williams drove for a pretty reverse layup to pull Utah within 103-106 with 1:30 to go. Howard missed inside and missed the putback attempt, but Kirilenko also missed at the other end with 42 seconds remaining. Harris turned the ball over. Williams drove for the layup, but Erick Dampier was there for the defensive play of the game in getting the clean block with 12 seconds left. Nowitzki was intentionally fouled and hit both free throws to give Dallas a 5-point lead with 10 seconds left. After a Utah timeout, Okur missed, but Boozer got the rebound and layup with 4 seconds left. Dallas used a timeout to advance the ball to halfcourt and they inbounded to Nowitzki, who saw a then clear path to the basket and drove, but Kirilenko got there in time to disrupt Nowitzki's reverse layup attempt and Kirilenko got the rebound and Utah called timeout with .3 seconds remaining - Nowitzki correctly called it a "dumb play" on his part after the game (he should have just held on to the ball to force the free throws and make it a 2 possession game). Utah used the timeout to advance the ball to halfcourt. The ball was inbounded to Okur and his fade-away 3-point attempt missed at the buzzer. Dallas won 108-105. Phew. It was a great, tough game that went down to the wire - the largest lead in the 4th quarter was 5 points. Dallas has been proving lately that they can win these types of games (I doubt they would have won a game like this in November). Neither coach could have been too happy with the defensive play as both teams shot above 50% FG, but the hard-nose effort was there from the players. Dallas shot 52.9% (37-70) FG including 5-13 3-pointers. Utah shot 50.7% (34-67) FG including 4-11 3-pointers. Dallas shot 29-35 FT and Utah shot 33-40 FT. Dallas out-rebounded Utah 33-28 including 8-7 offensive. Both teams were sloppy with the ball with a high number of turnovers. Dallas had 21 turnovers and Utah had 22 turnovers. Dirk Nowitzki had a game high 38 points on 12-18 FG and 13-15 FT. He also had 7 rebounds. Jason Terry turned it on late in the game. He scored 11 of his 18 points in the 4th quarter. Terry also had 6 assists. Josh Howard played well and had 21 points and a game high 9 rebounds. Devin Harris had 14 points and 4 assists. Both Howard and Harris had highlight dunks in the game. Jerry Stackhouse had 11 points in 17 minutes before his ejection. Dallas' centers were fairly quiet in this game. Erick Dampier had 2 points (didn't attempt a shot) and 2 rebounds in 30 minutes - but did have the key block at the end. He had 3 steals, 2 blocks, and 3 turnovers. DeSagana Diop had 1 point (also didn't attempt a shot) and 4 rebounds in 16 minutes. DJ Mbenga got in for a fraction of a minute at the end of the 2nd quarter. Devean George had 3 points on 1-6 FG and 1-4 3-pointers and 4 rebounds. Greg Buckner was the only other Mav to play and he missed 2 attempts and had 1 rebound and 1 steal in 11 minutes. Carlos Boozer led the way for Utah with 29 points including 13-19 FG. He also had 4 rebounds, 4 assists, 3 steals, and 5 turnovers. Deron Williams only shot 3-11 FG. He had 13 points and 6 assists. Mehmet Okur had 14 points including 3-9 FG and 1-6 3-pointers and 4 rebounds. Matt Harpring also had 14 points. He had 6 rebounds before fouling out with 10 seconds left in the game on an intentional foul. Andrei Kirilenko had 11 points and 6 rebounds and Derek Fisher had 11 points and 3 assists. Quotes Avery Johnson: "It was a tough physical game. Both teams were playing some hungry basketball. We didn't have too good of a 1st half and I just wanted to flat out challenge the team, especially my point guards, at halftime because I was disappointed with the effort. We're in kind of a bounce back mode after a disappointing loss. We didn't play well here the last time in this building. We had 21 turnovers - we'll have to address that. But again, I like the way our team hung in there through a lot of adversity out there on the court." Johnson: "Our guys battled. They battled. There's nothing soft about this team. They're hungry." Johnson on Okur: "[We] did not want to leave him. I'm from New Orleans, have you ever eaten red beans and rice? He was the rice and we wanted to be the beans and be all over him. He's a great shooter. We wanted to try to stick with him as close as we could." Dirk Nowitzki: "After our last game against the Lakers, where we let the game slip away in the 4th quarter, we wanted to come in here and get a win, and Utah really embarrassed us last time we played them here, they really put it to us. It was a great win for us." Nowitzki: "They out-played us in the 1st half, getting to the loose balls, and we weren't aggressive enough, but we turned it around. You have to match their physical contact and we did that tonight and got to the foul line which helped things out." Nowitzki: "I think in the 2nd half we turned it around a little bit. In this building, they play so hard, you have to match their physical contact and I think we try to get to basket, get to foul line, guys did a great job in the 2nd half." Nowitzki: "I was able to find some open looks. There will be some nights where the basket is a little bigger and you feel great about yourself." Nowitzki on Stackhouse's flagrants: "Tough calls. I guess they're trying to clean the league up, but I don't know if either one was flagrant, especially the 2nd one, where he was going for the ball. Tough calls, but there are some tough calls in the league, that's why it's a team game." Nowitzki on Stackhouse: "More than anything, I think Stack really set a great example for us, how he played hard and he left it all out there. That's why we have him. You know, he's a big key of why we went to the finals last year. He's probably one of our toughest guys out there and that [the flagrant foul calls] definitely jump-started us." Jason Terry: "[Utah] is very physical, but tonight we matched their aggression and came on top with the win. We got down early, but for us we don't put our head down and we know we can play much better basketball than we played [early in the game]." Terry: "They did a good job tonight, cutting to the basket and getting to the free throw line in the 1st half where they got into the bonus early. In the 2nd half, we didn't foul them as much and it helped us. We had more emphasis on being aggressive tonight, taking what the defense gives you, attacking." Jerry Stackhouse on the 1st flagrant foul: "He knows my move. I've been playing against Matt [Harpring] since 1992. That move is to back the guy off of you. A guy with any good sense would have backed up." Stackhouse: "[After the 1st flagrant foul] everything I did after that was marginal was going to go against me. But we got the win - deal with that." Stackhouse on he and Utah: "It's personal. They don't like me and I don't like them." Stackhouse: "I don't care much for them. They probably don't care much for me. That's why it's always good to get a win here, because it's hard to do." Stackhouse: "It's just another team that I can be passionate against. They're going to hold and grab try to play a fake physical game." Stackhouse on Utah: "But that's coward basketball. That's what they play, trying to talk the refs into calling flagrant fouls and Sloan lobbying for a flagrant foul at half court." Jerry Sloan: "I didn't think we were very physical. One of our biggest problems we had is understanding our assignments. We came trying to deal with our pick-and-roll situation and we got mixed up on that 2 or 3 times. I'm responsible for that. I guess I didn't do a very good job of explaining what we were doing." Sloan: "When it came down to it, they played as a team - that is their experience. We didn't." Sloan on the end of the game: "You have to stay with what you're doing and not let anyone take you out of what you're doing - that is what they do. You're going to get beat once in a while, but you can't let it happen 2 or 3 times, not when there is 2 1/2 minutes left. You have to be tough or accept the consequences." Sloan: "I didn't like the way we executed on offense, I didn't think we executed at all. When we ran the screen-and-roll, I thought when we did a very poor job on setting screens, we slipped the screen and gave them plenty of time to get back to the guys on the perimeter." Sloan on Nowitzki: "He is one of those guys that are going to get you 15 to 18 free throws every night, that's tough to deal with." Andrei Kirilenko: "This game, it seemed we can win and are supposed to win. They forced us to take some shots we shouldn't have and we can't do anything. But it's a game, and we can't win every game." Carlos Boozer: "They got to the free throw line a lot, a little bit more than we would like. They got a lot of points from the free throw line in the 4th quarter. They made plays to win and we didn't. Give them credit." Boozer on losing the lead in the 3rd quarter: "I wouldn't say a let down. I think they're a good team and they're going to make runs. They did." Boozer on Nowitzki: "Heck of a ball player, great jump shot, good pump fakes, and gets to the free throw line a little bit more than I thought he should have." Deron Williams: "It was definitely a physical game. It's going to be like that when 2 teams at the top of the Western Conference are battling. Both teams wanted the game, but they just played a little bit better than us tonight." Williams: "We can play with any team in this league. We just have lapses sometimes against some teams, but for the most part we feel like we'll win when we execute our type of basketball. I think we got away from that a little bit in this game." Dallas Mavericks 108, Utah Jazz 105 at Utah (January 9) 1st 2nd 3rd 4th - Final 2FG 3FG FG% FT% Dallas 26 19 36 27 - 108 .561 .385 .529 .829 Utah 24 29 29 23 - 105 .536 .364 .507 .825 Halftime: Utah 53-45 3rd Q: Utah 82-81 Technicals: Dallas defensive 3 seconds 5:22 1st, Jerry Stackhouse 0:32 1st, Utah defensive 3 seconds 6:56 2nd, Avery Johnson 11:19 3rd Flagrant Fouls: Jerry Stackhouse (level 1) 0:32 1st, Jerry Stackhouse (level 1) (ejected) 0:08 3rd Refs: Joe Forte, Derek Richardson, Eli Roe Attendance: 19,911 (sellout) IL: Dallas - Maurice Ager, J.J. Barea, Pops Mensah-Bonsu Utah - Rafael Araujo Dallas Mavericks REB Player MIN FGM-FGA 3PM-3PA FTM-FTA PTS O-T AST TO PF STL BLK Devin Harris 32 5-7 0-1 4-4 14 0-2 4 4 3 1 0 Jason Terry 37 7-12 2-5 2-2 18 1-2 6 3 1 0 0 Dirk Nowitzki 40 12-18 1-1 13-15 38 0-7 2 3 4 1 0 Josh Howard 40 8-18 0-1 5-7 21 3-9 1 2 3 0 0 Erick Dampier 30 0-0 0-0 2-2 2 0-2 0 3 5 3 2 Devean George 18 1-6 1-4 0-0 3 2-4 0 3 2 0 0 Jerry Stackhouse 17 4-7 1-1 2-3 11 1-2 1 1 2 1 1 DeSagana Diop 16 0-0 0-0 1-2 1 0-4 0 1 4 0 0 Greg Buckner 11 0-2 0-0 0-0 0 1-1 0 1 2 1 0 DJ Mbenga 1 0-0 0-0 0-0 0 0-0 0 0 0 0 0 Totals 48 37-70 5-13 29-35 108 8-33 14 21 26 7 3 Utah Jazz REB Player MIN FGM-FGA 3PM-3PA FTM-FTA PTS O-T AST TO PF STL BLK Deron Williams 37 3-11 0-1 7-8 13 1-3 6 3 3 2 0 Gordan Giricek 18 2-3 1-1 2-2 7 0-3 2 2 3 0 0 Carlos Boozer 43 13-19 0-0 3-4 29 1-4 4 5 3 3 0 Andrei Kirilenko 32 4-8 1-2 2-4 11 2-6 2 2 4 3 0 Mehmet Okur 36 3-9 1-6 7-8 14 0-4 2 3 5 0 0 Matt Harpring 28 4-8 0-0 6-6 14 2-6 2 1 6 0 0 Derek Fisher 27 3-6 1-1 4-4 11 0-0 3 4 2 1 0 Paul Millsap 9 1-2 0-0 0-0 2 1-1 0 1 3 0 0 Ronnie Brewer 5 1-1 0-0 0-0 2 0-0 0 0 0 1 0 Jarron Collins 4 0-0 0-0 2-4 2 0-1 0 0 1 1 0 Totals 48 34-67 4-11 33-40 105 7-28 21 22 30 11 0 Portland at Dallas (January 10) It was the 2nd night of a back-to-back for both teams. It was also the only "easy" game on the Mavs schedule on their period of 5 games in 7 nights (Indiana, San Antonio, Lakers, and Utah). Josh Howard scored 5 straight points and Devin Harris added a layup to give Dallas a 16-6 lead with 5:05 left. Dallas led 22-14 with 2:15 remaining, but Dallas missed their last 3 shots as Portland scored the last 8 points of the quarter. The game was tied at 22-22 after 1. Austin Croshere scored the first 4 points of the 2nd quarter. Dallas led 30-28 with 7:45 to go and Jason Terry scored 6 straight points to kick off a 14-0 Dallas run to go up 44-28 with 3:35 left as Portland missed 5 shots and committed 3 turnovers. A jumper by Zach Randolph with 3:20 remaining ended Portland's almost 4 1/2 minute scoring drought. 3 straight free throws by Dirk Nowitzki gave Dallas a 47-30 lead with 2:20 left. Dallas would not score again in the quarter, but Portland only scored 4 points themselves. Dallas led 47-34 at the half. Portland only shot 5-17 FG in the 2nd quarter as Dallas out-scored the Blazers 25-12 in the quarter. 34 points was the fewest an opponent had scored in the 1st half against Dallas this season. Dallas scored the first 4 points of the 3rd quarter, but Portland answered with 3 consecutive buckets to pull within 40-51 with 9:30 to go. Consecutive 3-pointers by Howard gave Dallas a 61-43 lead with 5:50 remaining. Portland would get no closer than 16 points the rest of the quarter. Dallas led 72-53 after 3. Howard had 12 points and Zandolph had 10 points in the 3rd quarter. Portland was unable to make an rally early in the 4th quarter and they got no closer than 18 points in the quarter. 8 straight Dallas points by Croshere (with a LaMarcus Aldridge bucket for Portland mixed in) gave Dallas their largest lead at 93-67 with 4:10 remaining and Dallas led in the 20s the rest of the way. Dallas won 99-74. The 1st quarter wasn't as pretty or easy as the Mavs would have liked, but the rest of the game was. Dallas out-scored Portland 50-31 in the 2nd and 3rd quarters and got to rest players in this game as no Mav played 34 minutes. Basically, Dallas shot well and Portland did not. Dallas shot 51.5% (35-68) FG including a white hot 10-16 3-pointers and Portland shot 39.4% (28-71) FG including an ice cold 0-11 3-pointers. Dallas shot 19-20 FT and Portland shot 18-24 FT. Dallas out-rebounded Portland 40-37, but the Blazers had the edge on offensive boards of 12-8. Dallas played a good team game and had 23 assists while Portland had just 12 assists. Dallas is now 9-0 in the 2nd night of a back-to-back. It was also Dallas' 12th straight win vs Portland. As I said, it was a team game and no one player really stood out, just a number of solid performances. Jason Terry had a game high 20 points including 3-4 3-pointers, 3 rebounds, and 3 assists. Erick Dampier had the defensive assignment of trying to contain Zach Randolph and Damp received praise from his coach for the job he did. Damp had 2 points on 1-1 FG and 10 rebounds, and even had 3 assists. Josh Howard had 17 points including 3-4 3-pointers and 8 rebounds in 27 minutes. Due to the blow out and rest, Dirk Nowitzki only played 26 minutes. He had 11 points (3-6 FG and 5-6 FT), 4 rebounds, and 5 assists. Devin Harris had 14 points including 5-6 FG and broke his string of assistless games and had 3 assists in this game. Austin Croshere had one of his better games with the Mavs (including playing in the 2nd quarter, not just garbage time). He had 13 points including 4-5 FG and 2-2 3-pointers and 5 rebounds. Greg Buckner chipped in 10 points and 3 rebounds. Devean George had a rare poor outing and missed all 4 shots he attempted and his only other stats were 2 rebounds and 5 fouls. DJ Mbenga had a worse night as he played just 3 minutes and was rewarded with a bloody nose that took him out of the game after getting popped by an errant elbow (and no foul called). Jerry Stackhouse struggled with 6 points including 2-8 FG and 2 rebounds in 11 minutes. DeSagana Diop had 2 points on 1-1 FG and 2 rebounds in 13 minutes. The Mavs double-teamed Zach Randolph often. He did score points, but was 3 below his average and the double-team seemed to disrupt Portland's offense. Randolph had 21 points and 5 rebounds in 30 minutes. Rookie Brandon Roy really struggled with his shot and shot 4-13 FG. He did hit 7-7 FT and had 15 points and 6 rebounds. Local kid LaMarcus Aldridge got extended minutes in his first visit to his hometown. He had 14 points on 7-14 FG, 6 rebounds, and 2 blocks in a game high 34 minutes. No other Blazer was in double-digits scoring. Starter Jarrett Jack shot 2-7 FG for 4 points and starter Ime Udoka shot 1-5 FG for 2 points. The 4 starters besides Randolph shot 7-26 FG. Quotes Avery Johnson: "Tonight we had a rocky 1st quarter. The teams were going back and forth. We built an early lead, but they made a run on us, like an 11-2 run, to close that 1st quarter. We got our defense set a little bit better in the 2nd quarter. We tried to make it tough on them. They have actually been playing some really good basketball, so we knew it wasn't going to be an easy game. Fortunately, we had a little more energy, made a few more shots in the 2nd half, and kind of got away from them a little bit. Fortunately tonight we did not have to over use anybody. We are fortunate that we have Eric Dampier on our team because tonight he battled Randolph. Randolph could have had a bigger night than he had. He scored some points when Dampier was not in the game, but Dampier was our work horse on Randolph to start the game. If this was football, he would get the game ball because I like what he did tonight defensively." Johnson on the 2nd quarter run: "Dampier's defense was a big key for that. When we got him back in the game, he was in during that stretch. His defense was big in trying to deny Randolph. Our weakside defense was pretty good. Devin made some nice strides to the basket. He's really slashing to the basket pretty effectively. His decision making has been really good and was good tonight. Again, Dirk only played 25 minutes and we are very fortunate because this team has beat some really good teams this year." Johnson on Terry: "We want to keep him where he is right now. He had a good 2nd half last night [against Utah]. I was really disappointed the way our guard play in the 1st half against Utah. We talked to them about it at halftime and they responded. Devin got a big charge to start that quarter and JET [Terry] made some big shots for us like he always does. JET and Dirk, Devin and Dirk, Josh Howard and Dirk - they have really become some nice tandems and multiple pick-and-rolls and different looks that we like to give teams." Johnson on Croshere: "He was solid, he stroked the ball. He was aggressive. He's been doing a nice job of rebounding for us. In the game that he started against Denver for Dirk, he didn't shoot the ball well, but he had 8 rebounds. He's been a model citizen, always there for us in practice. He'll practice hard, work hard. He's been good." Johnson: "We try to eliminate all excuses. But I'm glad we are at home. We had 3 tough, tough games on the road. I'm glad they didn't make us go all the way across the country to Toronto or Indiana first." Josh Howard: "This was our typical defensive performance. We hold ourselves accountable on both ends of the floor." Howard: "This was one of our toughest back-to-backs. You had time enough to go get some food, get some sleep, and wake up the next morning and it's time to play." Jason Terry: "We don't like excuses around here. We're still disappointed about the Lakers loss and for us it's about putting together some good defensive games. We felt the last 2 games we haven't reached our defensive goals. Tonight we did a much better job. You're fatigued, you're tired, but that's life in the NBA. We still have one of the best schedules in the league so we really have no excuse but to come out and play with energy. I thought our fans did a great job of welcoming us home and it was a good effort." Terry on being undefeated in the 2nd night of a back-to-back: "It says a lot about our strength and conditioning. We work awfully hard in the offseason, and that's where you build up that endurance to be able to play well in back-to-back situations." Terry on Dallas' ball movement: "It tough to defend when you do that because you keep the opponent on their heals, and that's definitely the key to our success. Everyone on this team is a threat offensively, and especially when we move the ball. It makes it tough for the defense to adjust." Terry on Johnson's instructions to him: "Shoot the ball. That's all he said. 3 words. Shoot the ball." Jerry Stackhouse: "This is a game where we should come out and take care of business and win. We don't look at this as a game we should lose since we're a veteran team and they're so young." Stackhouse on playing in Dallas: "We feel we should come in here and win these games, and we did. We talked a lot about finishing our plays, and we really finished our plays." Erick Dampier on defending Randolph: "I just tried to keep him out of the post. I tried to make him catch everything away from the basket. He hit a couple jumpers on us and he got to the free throw line, but we went out and got the job done defensively on him. We've got to come out and be aggressive on defense every night." Dampier on his 3 assists: "I just try to hit guys when they are open. I just try to give them a good pass when they're cutting to the basket so they can catch it and lay it up. I went out and set good solid picks and Devin was able to get to the basket tonight and make easy layups. We've just got to keep doing that." Dampier: "I'm sure the guards are a lot more happier when I'm setting them up on the offensive end so they can drive in and make easy layups. But those blocks are big for us so we just got to go out and play good defense consistently." DJ Mbenga on his bloody nose: "I was setting a pick and the next thing I knew, I'm bleeding." Nate McMillan: "We had some open looks. We've got to knock down those shots. We're getting the shots and we've got to knock those shots down. I thought we looked like we had some heavy legs in the first unit. The second unit came in and some of those guys were able to move a little faster. But we've got to knock down some shots and right now with the perimeter shooting if the ball doesn't go through the hole, it's just a tough night." McMillan on missing open shots: "Yeah, once you get them you've got to knock them down. We've seen double-teams on Zach [Randolph] all season long and we've tried to make a lot of adjustments to try and get him the ball. But he is passing the ball out. He has to continue to pass the ball out and as long as we're getting the shots that's a good thing, but we've got to start making them." McMillan on Dallas: "Yeah, that's a good team. They were strong. I thought they looked a little fatigued at times, but they do have guys they can bring in. They brought in a second unit with guys like Stackhouse and Croshere and it's a solid unit. From top to bottom, they've got a first and second unit that a lot people consider as a team that can win [a championship]." McMillan: "I thought we had some heavy legs. They had a lot of movement and they're a good passing team also. They play with 2 point guards on the floor. You can also really look at Howard as being a guy that's capable of running the point. So a lot of guys that can handle the ball and they do a good job of moving it." Zach Randolph: "We knew what to expect coming into San Antonio and Dallas, these 2 championship caliber teams. Everybody went into that game tonight and couldn't hit open shots. It's tough when you can't make a shot. We're going to have to work on hitting them open shots and playing out of that double-team, kicking the ball out of the double-team, and making something happen." Randolph: "They started hitting shots and we couldn't throw nothing in the basket tonight. But they started hitting shots and they just ran out on us and we couldn't stop them on the other end. So it's tough playing like that." Brandon Roy: "They're a tough team to guard. They've got a threat from every which end. If Dirk's not going, then Howard is going or Jason Terry's going. We stayed close for a quarter, but after that is wasn't very close." Roy on Portland's shooting: "They did what every other team is doing. We just didn't knock down shots. It was a bad night from the field and nobody could seem to buy one, and when you're shooting that bad against a team this good the score is going to reflect the way it did. So we've just got to continue to play out of that double-team and make shots." Dallas Mavericks 99, Portland Trailblazers 74 at Dallas (January 10) 1st 2nd 3rd 4th - Final 2FG 3FG FG% FT% Dallas 22 25 25 27 - 99 .481 .625 .515 .950 Portland 22 12 19 21 - 74 .467 .000 .394 .750 Halftime: Dallas 47-34 3rd Q: Dallas 72-53 Technicals: none Refs: Mike Callahan, Scott Foster, David Guthrie Attendance: 20,256 (sellout) IL: Dallas - Maurice Ager, J.J. Barea, Pops Mensah-Bonsu Portland - Darius Miles, Travis Outlaw Dallas Mavericks REB Player MIN FGM-FGA 3PM-3PA FTM-FTA PTS O-T AST TO PF STL BLK Devin Harris 24 5-6 0-0 4-4 14 0-0 3 2 1 2 1 Jason Terry 33 8-12 3-4 1-1 20 1-3 3 2 3 1 0 Dirk Nowitzki 26 3-6 0-0 5-6 11 2-4 5 2 0 1 0 Josh Howard 27 5-12 3-4 4-4 17 2-8 1 1 1 1 0 Erick Dampier 32 1-1 0-0 0-0 2 0-10 3 1 1 0 2 Austin Croshere 20 4-5 2-2 3-3 13 1-5 1 1 4 1 1 Anthony Johnson 17 1-3 0-0 0-0 2 0-1 4 1 2 0 0 Greg Buckner 17 4-9 2-3 0-0 10 1-3 1 0 1 0 0 Devean George 16 0-4 0-1 0-0 0 0-2 0 0 5 0 0 DeSagana Diop 13 1-1 0-0 0-0 2 1-2 1 1 3 0 0 Jerry Stackhouse 11 2-8 0-2 2-2 6 0-2 1 1 1 1 0 DJ Mbenga 3 1-1 0-0 0-0 2 0-0 0 2 1 1 0 Totals 48 35-68 10-16 19-20 99 8-40 23 14 23 8 4 Portland Trailblazers REB Player MIN FGM-FGA 3PM-3PA FTM-FTA PTS O-T AST TO PF STL BLK Jarrett Jack 27 2-7 0-1 0-0 4 0-0 2 1 2 1 0 Brandon Roy 30 4-13 0-2 7-7 15 1-6 1 1 1 3 0 Zach Randolph 30 8-12 0-0 5-7 21 1-5 1 2 2 0 0 Ime Udoka 20 1-5 0-3 0-0 2 2-2 3 2 4 0 0 Joel Przybilla 8 0-1 0-0 0-0 0 1-2 0 1 1 0 0 LaMarcus Aldridge 34 7-14 0-0 0-0 14 2-6 1 2 3 0 2 Martell Webster 25 3-5 0-1 0-2 6 3-6 0 1 2 0 0 Juan Dixon 24 2-5 0-1 4-4 8 0-1 2 2 3 1 1 Jamaal Magloire 15 0-1 0-0 1-2 1 2-6 0 0 1 0 0 Dan Dickau 12 1-5 0-3 1-2 3 0-0 1 0 0 0 0 Raef LaFrentz 8 0-3 0-0 0-0 0 0-1 0 1 0 0 0 Sergio Rodriguez 6 0-0 0-0 0-0 0 0-2 1 0 1 0 0 Totals 48 28-71 0-11 18-24 74 12-37 12 13 20 5 3 patricia