A Texas Showdown occurred Thursday night as the Mavs walked into San Antonio to take on the Western Conference top-seeded Spurs. Dallas is still on the outside looking in the playoff hunt for the 8th seed.
The Spurs are still playing without their star point guard Tony Parker, who suffered a sprained left ankle on March 1st against the Kings. Also, Shawn Marion is still out with a bruised left calf and inactive for his now fourth game.
The Spurs began the first quarter with a 6-2 run. Spurs’ Tim Duncan dominated the boards recording 8 rebounds in the quarter. The Mavs were 8-for-20 from the field (40%), while the Spurs were 9-for-25.
Dallas got a little momentum tying the game 35-35 midway through the second quarter, coming from 11 points by Dirk Nowtizki and Mike James. After a Greg Popovich timeout, the Spurs responded with a 9-2 run giving them a 9 point lead going into half time.
The Spurs led the game at halftime 50-41. Dirk Nowtizki was Dallas’ leading scorer with 9 points. Spurs’ Kawhi Leonard and Tim Duncan both scored 9 points. Both teams shot about 40% from the field. Big stat from the half: The Spurs outrebounded Dallas 31 to 14, thanks to Tim Duncan’s 11 first half rebounds.
Dallas came out of halftime with a 14-4 run thanks to three Spurs’ turnovers. The Mavs went 1-for-5 on their next 6 offensive possessions, giving the Spurs a 9 point lead. Tim Duncan was the leading scorer with 8 points along with 6 rebounds.
The Mavs playoff chances were at stake as they were not looking to throw in the towel so easily in the fourth quarter. Dallas went on a 9-1 run to slim the Spurs’ lead from six to just two points with nine minutes left. Dirk drains a huge three point jumper to give the Mavs a one point lead at 78-77. 5 points from Gary Neal started a 7-0 run by the Spurs. The Spurs went 0-for-3 their next four possessions, followed by a huge three-pointer in the corner by Vince Carter. The Mavs’ 5-0 run cut their deficit to one point with 40 seconds left. With 5 seconds left, the Mavs drew up a play for Vince Carter to hit final shot, but he misses the three point jumper.
The Spurs win 92-91, giving them their 50th win of the regular season and clinching a spot in the playoffs. The Mavs could not add a win to their 4-game winning streak falling to a 30-34 regular season record.
Five Mavs players were in double figures for the game. Vince Carter, Brandan Wright, O.J. Mayo, and Mike James all had 10 points. Dirk recorded a double-double with 21 points and 11 rebounds. The Mavs shot 37 of 83 from the field.
Tim Duncan showed why he is one of the top ten NBA power forwards of time: 28 points and 19 rebounds, shooting 12 of 20 from the field. There was no need to worry about Tony Parker’s injury as Spurs’ backup point guard Gary Neal had 17 points to finish the game.
Looking ahead the Mavs take on the Cavaliers at home Friday night. Also, the Mavs take on the Oklahoma City Thunder on Sunday night.
GO MAVS!
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