DAHITMAN
Rising Star
Dallas Mavericks cannot seem to buy a win against teams with a winning record.
Jason Kidd is steering the boat in the wrong direction. Dirk fucked his leg up today and will be out a few games.
[FLASH]http://www.youtube.com/watch/v/ZOgIlS8jcFk[/FLASH]
Today's Game SAS 88 @DAL 81 | Final
Celtics conclude Texas Triangle unmarked, hang on to outlast Mavs
PHOTO WIRE
Dallas Mavericks forward Dirk Nowitzki (41) of Germany, drives past Boston Celtics center Kendrick Perkins, right, in the second half of an NBA basketball game in Dallas, Thursday, March 20, 2008. The Celtics won 94-90. (AP Photo/Tony Gutierrez)
· View photo | View gallery
TEAM STAT COMPARISON
BOSTON DALLAS
Points 94 90
FG Made-Attempted 30-87 (.345) 33-84 (.393)
3P Made-Attempted 4-16 (.250) 6-18 (.333)
FT Made-Attempted 30-35 (.857) 18-24 (.750)
Rebounds (Offensive-Total) 12-49 9-51
Assists 16 19
Turnovers 8 14
Steals 10 2
Blocks 9 12
Fast Break Points 9 23
Fouls (Tech/Flagrant) 21 (0/0) 22 (1/0)
Largest Lead 6 7
TOP PERFORMERS
BOSTON DALLAS
P. Pierce
Points: 22
Reb: 13
Ast: 3
Stl: 1
Blk: 3
D. Nowitzki
Points: 22
Reb: 19
Ast: 1
Stl: 0
Blk: 2
GAME LEADERS
BOSTON DALLAS
Points P. Pierce 22 J. Howard 24
Rebounds P. Pierce 13 D. Nowitzki 19
Assists S. Cassell 6 J. Kidd 9
Steals R. Rondo 3 J. Kidd 2
Blocks P. Pierce 3 E. Dampier 4
· Team stats: Boston | Dallas
2007-08 SEASON
Boston leads 2-0
Thu 1/31 @BOS 96, DAL 90 Recap | Box Score
» Thu 3/20 BOS 94, @ DAL 90 Recap | Box Score
· Complete Schedule: Mavericks | Celtics
NEXT 5 GAMES
BOSTON (ET) DALLAS (ET)
03/22 @NO 8:00pm
03/24 PHI 7:30pm
03/26 PHO 7:00pm
03/28 NO 7:30pm
03/30 MIA 6:00pm
03/23 SA 1:00pm
03/25 LAC 8:30pm
03/27 @DEN 8:00pm
03/30 @GS 9:00pm
03/31 @LAC 10:30pm
· Complete Schedule: Boston | Dallas
DALLAS (AP) -- Ray Allen was sitting on the bench in the fourth quarter, arms crossed and a black shirt over his jersey. He was forced to watch James Posey take his place, just like he'd done the last few nights in Houston and San Antonio.
With 1:54 left, Allen finally got in. And with 31.7 seconds to go, he nailed the 3-pointer that capped the Celtics' dominant season over Texas teams.
Allen's go-ahead jumper sent Boston past Dallas 94-90 Thursday night, making the Celtics the first team to go 6-0 vs. San Antonio, Houston and Dallas since the 1999-2000 Milwaukee Bucks or 3-0 on a Texas road trip since the Sacramento Kings in November 2001.
So Much of One Thing
Dirk Nowitzki finished with 24 points and an unlikely 19 rebounds -- none of them on the offensive end. Here's a look at the most rebounds in a game with zero offensive boards in the last 20 years:
Player
Year
Reb.
Dirk Nowitzki 2002 21
Dirk Nowitzki 2008 19
Patrick Ewing 1996 19
David Robinson 1994 19
Along the way, they gave the Spurs their first home loss in six weeks, ended Houston's 22-game winning streak and stuck the Mavericks with just their sixth home loss of the season.
"This feels good," said Allen, who'd missed three games with a jammed left ankle. "It's something for the rest of the NBA to watch."
Boston upped its NBA-best record to 55-13 while winning for the 14th time in 15 games. The Celtics ended a seven-game losing streak in Dallas and swept the season series for the first time since 1993-94.
Best of all for coach Doc Rivers was having his trio of stars back in the starting lineup -- and atop the stat sheet.
Allen finished with 21 points in 31 minutes. Paul Pierce scored 22 and had a season-high 13 rebounds. Kevin Garnett added 20 and 13.
"It's good to see Ray back and healthy," Posey said. "That's what he does, make big shots. He's a big part of this team."
Dirk Nowitzki had 22 points and 19 rebounds, and Jason Kidd had nine assists, 11 rebounds and two points, but Dallas fell to 0-7 against teams with winning records since Kidd arrived.
The Mavericks led for most of the second half, but couldn't pull it out at the end. That's been typical in this new Kidd era, with five of their losses by six points or less. They were coming off a 2-point loss to the Lakers, although in that one they had to claw back from a 25-point deficit.
"We're just right there in a lot of these games," said Jerry Stackhouse, who scored 17 points. "It's disappointing to keep coming up short."
Dallas needs to snap out of it soon with San Antonio coming to town Sunday. The Mavs had won five straight against losing teams before these back-to-back home losses, the first time that's happened all season.
"The energy was there," coach Avery Johnson said. "Some things didn't go our way, but we hung in there."
Allen scored 18 points in 29 minutes over the first three quarters and had to figure he'd be back in. But that didn't happen until 10:06 elapsed, his opportunity only coming when Kendrick Perkins fouled out.
Nowitzki made both free throws off Perkins' foul, putting Dallas up 88-87. Neither team scored until Allen swished his jumper from the left side.
"It was a play Doc drew up in the timeout," Allen said. "Stack fell and I got to the 3-point line. I shot it high so that if I missed, KG could go up for the rebound."
Nowitzki missed the chance for a tying layup, then Posey stretched the lead with a pair of free throws. A layup by Erick Dampier got Dallas back within two with 6.7 seconds left, but Garnett sealed it with two more foul shots.
The Celtics took 18 free throws in the fourth quarter. They took 17 over the first three quarters combined. Boston made 30 of the 35.
The accuracy from the line was needed because the Celtics shot only 34.5 percent from the field, dragged down by starting point guard Rajon Rondo going 0-for-7 and backup Sam Cassell going 1-for-9. Cassell played the entire fourth quarter, as did Posey, who was 4-of-5 with 12 points.
"Ray was rusty and Posey was phenomenal," Rivers said.
Neither team led by more than seven, which kept the intensity going up. Things got snippy in the fourth quarter, especially between Nowitzki and Garnett, although nothing ever escalated beyond tough play.
The first half was filled with spurts, from Dallas closing the first quarter on a 12-2 run to Boston opening the second on a 14-4 roll. The Mavericks enjoyed the final push, a 13-5 streak featuring a go-ahead three-point play by Nowitzki and a mad-dash layup by Kidd that sent them into the locker room ahead 48-46.
Game notes
Boston remained at a one-Allen maximum, as Ray Allen's return coincided with Tony Allen sitting out with a bruised lower back. ... Nowitzki came into this game averaging 27.2 points per game against Boston for his career, his highest against any foe. ... By dropping Dallas to 29-6 at home, Boston takes over the NBA's second-best home record at 29-5. ... The Mavs had a season-high 12 blocks, topping the 11 in their previous game. ... Boston last swept the Texas Triangle in February 1987.
http://sports.espn.go.com/nba/recap?gameId=280320006
Lakers squander double-digit lead, have enough to end Mavs' win streak
ALSO SEE
· Lakers don't expect Bynum back until playoffs
PHOTO WIRE
Dallas Mavericks forward Dirk Nowitzki (41) of Germany reacts after failing to make a shot in the final seconds of an NBA basketball game against the Los Angeles Lakers in Dallas, Tuesday, March 18, 2008. The Lakers won 102-100. (AP Photo/Tony Gutierrez)
· View photo | View gallery
TEAM STAT COMPARISON
LOS ANGELES DALLAS
Points 102 100
FG Made-Attempted 37-89 (.416) 32-72 (.444)
3P Made-Attempted 7-19 (.368) 6-17 (.353)
FT Made-Attempted 21-29 (.724) 30-38 (.789)
Rebounds (Offensive-Total) 13-45 8-43
Assists 20 15
Turnovers 9 14
Steals 10 6
Blocks 7 11
Fast Break Points 15 26
Fouls (Tech/Flagrant) 20 (1/0) 22 (0/0)
Largest Lead 25 5
TOP PERFORMERS
LOS ANGELES DALLAS
K. Bryant
Points: 29
Reb: 2
Ast: 7
Stl: 3
Blk: 0
D. Nowitzki
Points: 35
Reb: 11
Ast: 1
Stl: 0
Blk: 5
GAME LEADERS
LOS ANGELES DALLAS
Points K. Bryant 29 D. Nowitzki 35
Rebounds L. Odom 17 D. Nowitzki 11
Assists K. Bryant 7 J. Kidd 7
Steals K. Bryant 3 J. Kidd 1
Blocks R. Turiaf 4 D. Nowitzki 5
· Team stats: Los Angeles | Dallas
2007-08 SEASON
Los Angeles leads 2-1
Fri 1/25 @DAL 112, LAL 105 Recap | Box Score
Sun 3/2 @LAL 108, DAL 104 Recap | Box Score
» Tue 3/18 LAL 102, @ DAL 100 Recap | Box Score
Apr 4, 2008 DAL @ LAL 10:30 PM ET
· Complete Schedule: Mavericks | Lakers
NEXT 5 GAMES
LOS ANGELES (ET) DALLAS (ET)
03/20 @UTA 10:30pm
03/21 SEA 10:30pm
03/23 GS 9:30pm
03/24 @GS 10:30pm
03/26 CHA 10:30pm
03/20 BOS 8:00pm
03/23 SA 1:00pm
03/25 LAC 8:30pm
03/27 @DEN 8:00pm
03/30 @GS 9:00pm
· Complete Schedule: Los Angeles | Dallas
DALLAS (AP) -- Kobe Bryant took a pass in the lane and spun toward a defender, flicking the ball over his head once his back was toward the basket. The ball hit the glass, caromed off the rim and fell into the net.
Just like that, the Los Angeles Lakers were up by 25 points midway through the third quarter. And the momentum the Dallas Mavericks thought they'd built with five lopsided wins over lousy teams seemed silly.
Kobe Vs. Mavs
Kobe Bryant lit up Dallas in the Lakers' first two meetings this season with the Mavs. A slight fall-off in stats for Kobe didn't result in a Laker loss however.
Previous 2 games
Tuesday
PPG 46.0 29
FG pct. 56.5 52.2
3-point pct. 50.0 50.0
RPG 10.5 2
Dirk Nowitzki and the Mavs ended up making things interesting all the way to the final buzzer, but it wasn't enough to change the outcome. The Lakers won 102-100 Tuesday night, ending a skid of three losses in four games and putting them back into a tie with Houston for the best record in the Western Conference.
"It's a big win for us," Bryant said. "We had to stop the bleeding. We got a big lead, but it wasn't the way we wanted to close out the game. But we got the win."
Bryant scored only nine of his 29 points in the second half. He also jammed his hip. An injury to an MVP front-runner could be devastating considering this was Los Angeles' second straight game without Pau Gasol and before the game coach Phil Jackson said emerging center Andrew Bynum probably won't return until the playoffs.
"I'm good. I'm straight," Bryant said. "I jammed my hip into the socket. It hurt for a minute and then released. I'm fine."
With Bryant slowed at the end, Vladimir Radmanovic stepped up, scoring 10 of his season-high 21 points in the final quarter. His spurt included three 3s, all of them while the Mavericks were challenging the biggest comeback in team history.
Dallas made only 12 shots in the first half and scored just 38 points. It was so bad that some fans booed and others chanted MVP for Bryant. Jessica Simpson, sitting in the front row with beau Tony Romo, was in jeopardy of being blamed for another loss by one of her hometown teams.
But the Mavs closed the third quarter on a 14-1 run, then opened the fourth with a 9-2 spurt. They pushed again at the end, with consecutive 3-pointers from Nowitzki making it 98-97 with 41 seconds left. A long 3 by Jason Terry got Dallas within 101-100 with 4.9 seconds to go.
Derek Fisher made one of two fouls shots after that, giving the Mavericks a chance to win it or take their chances in overtime -- like when the teams met in Los Angeles two weeks before. Nowitzki nailed a 3 to tie it last time, but this time his shot went wide right. Part of the problem was a low inbounds pass from Josh Howard that cost the big German precious seconds.
"Still, I had a good look," he said.
Nowitzki had 35 points, 11 rebounds and a season-high five blocks, but the Mavericks' five-game winning streak was snapped. Dallas fell to 0-6 against teams with winning records since adding Jason Kidd.
Kidd had his worst game since arriving from New Jersey, with one point (0-for-3 shooting, including a missed 3-pointer in the final half-minute), seven assists and three rebounds in only 28 minutes. He was benched from 6:27 of the third to 5:51 of the fourth.
Nowitzki said Los Angeles' great shooting in the first half kept Kidd from being a factor, which knocked the whole team out of whack.
"It's hard to get out running when you have to take the ball inbounds every time," said Nowitzki, whose frustration about the first half was evident when he hurled the ball the length of the court after the buzzer.
Lamar Odom scored 17 points for Los Angeles and Ronny Turiaf had 17 points, 17 rebounds and lots of tenacious play.
Jackson was disappointed that his players let Dallas rally, especially since he warned them exactly what to avoid and they didn't listen.
"They were pretty thick-headed tonight," he said.
Terry and Howard scored 19 points for Dallas, which slipped to seventh in the West. With 24 losses, the Mavericks have the same amount as eighth-seeded Golden State, but lead the Warriors by three games in the win column.
The Mavericks can't let this loss linger as Boston comes to town Thursday night and San Antonio on Sunday, giving them two more chances to try beating a championship contender.
"If we come out and play focused basketball like we're capable of doing, we can beat anybody," Jerry Stackhouse said. "If not, we'll be hanging our heads down like tonight."
Game notes
Mavs security kept two more bloggers out of the locker room, as per team owner Mark Cuban's policy. ... Bryant shot 27 free throws last time the teams met. He had only six this time -- and made only three. ... Dallas' game against the Clippers next Tuesday will be shown live in 3D high definition to an invitation-only audience of 100 fans picked from the team's Web site. The 2007 All-Star Game and Game 2 of last year's NBA Finals are the only previous live sporting events shown in 3D HD.
http://sports.espn.go.com/nba/recap?gameId=280318006
Jason Kidd is steering the boat in the wrong direction. Dirk fucked his leg up today and will be out a few games.
[FLASH]http://www.youtube.com/watch/v/ZOgIlS8jcFk[/FLASH]
Today's Game SAS 88 @DAL 81 | Final
Celtics conclude Texas Triangle unmarked, hang on to outlast Mavs
PHOTO WIRE
Dallas Mavericks forward Dirk Nowitzki (41) of Germany, drives past Boston Celtics center Kendrick Perkins, right, in the second half of an NBA basketball game in Dallas, Thursday, March 20, 2008. The Celtics won 94-90. (AP Photo/Tony Gutierrez)
· View photo | View gallery
TEAM STAT COMPARISON
BOSTON DALLAS
Points 94 90
FG Made-Attempted 30-87 (.345) 33-84 (.393)
3P Made-Attempted 4-16 (.250) 6-18 (.333)
FT Made-Attempted 30-35 (.857) 18-24 (.750)
Rebounds (Offensive-Total) 12-49 9-51
Assists 16 19
Turnovers 8 14
Steals 10 2
Blocks 9 12
Fast Break Points 9 23
Fouls (Tech/Flagrant) 21 (0/0) 22 (1/0)
Largest Lead 6 7
TOP PERFORMERS
BOSTON DALLAS
P. Pierce
Points: 22
Reb: 13
Ast: 3
Stl: 1
Blk: 3
D. Nowitzki
Points: 22
Reb: 19
Ast: 1
Stl: 0
Blk: 2
GAME LEADERS
BOSTON DALLAS
Points P. Pierce 22 J. Howard 24
Rebounds P. Pierce 13 D. Nowitzki 19
Assists S. Cassell 6 J. Kidd 9
Steals R. Rondo 3 J. Kidd 2
Blocks P. Pierce 3 E. Dampier 4
· Team stats: Boston | Dallas
2007-08 SEASON
Boston leads 2-0
Thu 1/31 @BOS 96, DAL 90 Recap | Box Score
» Thu 3/20 BOS 94, @ DAL 90 Recap | Box Score
· Complete Schedule: Mavericks | Celtics
NEXT 5 GAMES
BOSTON (ET) DALLAS (ET)
03/22 @NO 8:00pm
03/24 PHI 7:30pm
03/26 PHO 7:00pm
03/28 NO 7:30pm
03/30 MIA 6:00pm
03/23 SA 1:00pm
03/25 LAC 8:30pm
03/27 @DEN 8:00pm
03/30 @GS 9:00pm
03/31 @LAC 10:30pm
· Complete Schedule: Boston | Dallas
DALLAS (AP) -- Ray Allen was sitting on the bench in the fourth quarter, arms crossed and a black shirt over his jersey. He was forced to watch James Posey take his place, just like he'd done the last few nights in Houston and San Antonio.
With 1:54 left, Allen finally got in. And with 31.7 seconds to go, he nailed the 3-pointer that capped the Celtics' dominant season over Texas teams.
Allen's go-ahead jumper sent Boston past Dallas 94-90 Thursday night, making the Celtics the first team to go 6-0 vs. San Antonio, Houston and Dallas since the 1999-2000 Milwaukee Bucks or 3-0 on a Texas road trip since the Sacramento Kings in November 2001.
So Much of One Thing
Dirk Nowitzki finished with 24 points and an unlikely 19 rebounds -- none of them on the offensive end. Here's a look at the most rebounds in a game with zero offensive boards in the last 20 years:
Player
Year
Reb.
Dirk Nowitzki 2002 21
Dirk Nowitzki 2008 19
Patrick Ewing 1996 19
David Robinson 1994 19
Along the way, they gave the Spurs their first home loss in six weeks, ended Houston's 22-game winning streak and stuck the Mavericks with just their sixth home loss of the season.
"This feels good," said Allen, who'd missed three games with a jammed left ankle. "It's something for the rest of the NBA to watch."
Boston upped its NBA-best record to 55-13 while winning for the 14th time in 15 games. The Celtics ended a seven-game losing streak in Dallas and swept the season series for the first time since 1993-94.
Best of all for coach Doc Rivers was having his trio of stars back in the starting lineup -- and atop the stat sheet.
Allen finished with 21 points in 31 minutes. Paul Pierce scored 22 and had a season-high 13 rebounds. Kevin Garnett added 20 and 13.
"It's good to see Ray back and healthy," Posey said. "That's what he does, make big shots. He's a big part of this team."
Dirk Nowitzki had 22 points and 19 rebounds, and Jason Kidd had nine assists, 11 rebounds and two points, but Dallas fell to 0-7 against teams with winning records since Kidd arrived.
The Mavericks led for most of the second half, but couldn't pull it out at the end. That's been typical in this new Kidd era, with five of their losses by six points or less. They were coming off a 2-point loss to the Lakers, although in that one they had to claw back from a 25-point deficit.
"We're just right there in a lot of these games," said Jerry Stackhouse, who scored 17 points. "It's disappointing to keep coming up short."
Dallas needs to snap out of it soon with San Antonio coming to town Sunday. The Mavs had won five straight against losing teams before these back-to-back home losses, the first time that's happened all season.
"The energy was there," coach Avery Johnson said. "Some things didn't go our way, but we hung in there."
Allen scored 18 points in 29 minutes over the first three quarters and had to figure he'd be back in. But that didn't happen until 10:06 elapsed, his opportunity only coming when Kendrick Perkins fouled out.
Nowitzki made both free throws off Perkins' foul, putting Dallas up 88-87. Neither team scored until Allen swished his jumper from the left side.
"It was a play Doc drew up in the timeout," Allen said. "Stack fell and I got to the 3-point line. I shot it high so that if I missed, KG could go up for the rebound."
Nowitzki missed the chance for a tying layup, then Posey stretched the lead with a pair of free throws. A layup by Erick Dampier got Dallas back within two with 6.7 seconds left, but Garnett sealed it with two more foul shots.
The Celtics took 18 free throws in the fourth quarter. They took 17 over the first three quarters combined. Boston made 30 of the 35.
The accuracy from the line was needed because the Celtics shot only 34.5 percent from the field, dragged down by starting point guard Rajon Rondo going 0-for-7 and backup Sam Cassell going 1-for-9. Cassell played the entire fourth quarter, as did Posey, who was 4-of-5 with 12 points.
"Ray was rusty and Posey was phenomenal," Rivers said.
Neither team led by more than seven, which kept the intensity going up. Things got snippy in the fourth quarter, especially between Nowitzki and Garnett, although nothing ever escalated beyond tough play.
The first half was filled with spurts, from Dallas closing the first quarter on a 12-2 run to Boston opening the second on a 14-4 roll. The Mavericks enjoyed the final push, a 13-5 streak featuring a go-ahead three-point play by Nowitzki and a mad-dash layup by Kidd that sent them into the locker room ahead 48-46.
Game notes
Boston remained at a one-Allen maximum, as Ray Allen's return coincided with Tony Allen sitting out with a bruised lower back. ... Nowitzki came into this game averaging 27.2 points per game against Boston for his career, his highest against any foe. ... By dropping Dallas to 29-6 at home, Boston takes over the NBA's second-best home record at 29-5. ... The Mavs had a season-high 12 blocks, topping the 11 in their previous game. ... Boston last swept the Texas Triangle in February 1987.
http://sports.espn.go.com/nba/recap?gameId=280320006
Lakers squander double-digit lead, have enough to end Mavs' win streak
ALSO SEE
· Lakers don't expect Bynum back until playoffs
PHOTO WIRE
Dallas Mavericks forward Dirk Nowitzki (41) of Germany reacts after failing to make a shot in the final seconds of an NBA basketball game against the Los Angeles Lakers in Dallas, Tuesday, March 18, 2008. The Lakers won 102-100. (AP Photo/Tony Gutierrez)
· View photo | View gallery
TEAM STAT COMPARISON
LOS ANGELES DALLAS
Points 102 100
FG Made-Attempted 37-89 (.416) 32-72 (.444)
3P Made-Attempted 7-19 (.368) 6-17 (.353)
FT Made-Attempted 21-29 (.724) 30-38 (.789)
Rebounds (Offensive-Total) 13-45 8-43
Assists 20 15
Turnovers 9 14
Steals 10 6
Blocks 7 11
Fast Break Points 15 26
Fouls (Tech/Flagrant) 20 (1/0) 22 (0/0)
Largest Lead 25 5
TOP PERFORMERS
LOS ANGELES DALLAS
K. Bryant
Points: 29
Reb: 2
Ast: 7
Stl: 3
Blk: 0
D. Nowitzki
Points: 35
Reb: 11
Ast: 1
Stl: 0
Blk: 5
GAME LEADERS
LOS ANGELES DALLAS
Points K. Bryant 29 D. Nowitzki 35
Rebounds L. Odom 17 D. Nowitzki 11
Assists K. Bryant 7 J. Kidd 7
Steals K. Bryant 3 J. Kidd 1
Blocks R. Turiaf 4 D. Nowitzki 5
· Team stats: Los Angeles | Dallas
2007-08 SEASON
Los Angeles leads 2-1
Fri 1/25 @DAL 112, LAL 105 Recap | Box Score
Sun 3/2 @LAL 108, DAL 104 Recap | Box Score
» Tue 3/18 LAL 102, @ DAL 100 Recap | Box Score
Apr 4, 2008 DAL @ LAL 10:30 PM ET
· Complete Schedule: Mavericks | Lakers
NEXT 5 GAMES
LOS ANGELES (ET) DALLAS (ET)
03/20 @UTA 10:30pm
03/21 SEA 10:30pm
03/23 GS 9:30pm
03/24 @GS 10:30pm
03/26 CHA 10:30pm
03/20 BOS 8:00pm
03/23 SA 1:00pm
03/25 LAC 8:30pm
03/27 @DEN 8:00pm
03/30 @GS 9:00pm
· Complete Schedule: Los Angeles | Dallas
DALLAS (AP) -- Kobe Bryant took a pass in the lane and spun toward a defender, flicking the ball over his head once his back was toward the basket. The ball hit the glass, caromed off the rim and fell into the net.
Just like that, the Los Angeles Lakers were up by 25 points midway through the third quarter. And the momentum the Dallas Mavericks thought they'd built with five lopsided wins over lousy teams seemed silly.
Kobe Vs. Mavs
Kobe Bryant lit up Dallas in the Lakers' first two meetings this season with the Mavs. A slight fall-off in stats for Kobe didn't result in a Laker loss however.
Previous 2 games
Tuesday
PPG 46.0 29
FG pct. 56.5 52.2
3-point pct. 50.0 50.0
RPG 10.5 2
Dirk Nowitzki and the Mavs ended up making things interesting all the way to the final buzzer, but it wasn't enough to change the outcome. The Lakers won 102-100 Tuesday night, ending a skid of three losses in four games and putting them back into a tie with Houston for the best record in the Western Conference.
"It's a big win for us," Bryant said. "We had to stop the bleeding. We got a big lead, but it wasn't the way we wanted to close out the game. But we got the win."
Bryant scored only nine of his 29 points in the second half. He also jammed his hip. An injury to an MVP front-runner could be devastating considering this was Los Angeles' second straight game without Pau Gasol and before the game coach Phil Jackson said emerging center Andrew Bynum probably won't return until the playoffs.
"I'm good. I'm straight," Bryant said. "I jammed my hip into the socket. It hurt for a minute and then released. I'm fine."
With Bryant slowed at the end, Vladimir Radmanovic stepped up, scoring 10 of his season-high 21 points in the final quarter. His spurt included three 3s, all of them while the Mavericks were challenging the biggest comeback in team history.
Dallas made only 12 shots in the first half and scored just 38 points. It was so bad that some fans booed and others chanted MVP for Bryant. Jessica Simpson, sitting in the front row with beau Tony Romo, was in jeopardy of being blamed for another loss by one of her hometown teams.
But the Mavs closed the third quarter on a 14-1 run, then opened the fourth with a 9-2 spurt. They pushed again at the end, with consecutive 3-pointers from Nowitzki making it 98-97 with 41 seconds left. A long 3 by Jason Terry got Dallas within 101-100 with 4.9 seconds to go.
Derek Fisher made one of two fouls shots after that, giving the Mavericks a chance to win it or take their chances in overtime -- like when the teams met in Los Angeles two weeks before. Nowitzki nailed a 3 to tie it last time, but this time his shot went wide right. Part of the problem was a low inbounds pass from Josh Howard that cost the big German precious seconds.
"Still, I had a good look," he said.
Nowitzki had 35 points, 11 rebounds and a season-high five blocks, but the Mavericks' five-game winning streak was snapped. Dallas fell to 0-6 against teams with winning records since adding Jason Kidd.
Kidd had his worst game since arriving from New Jersey, with one point (0-for-3 shooting, including a missed 3-pointer in the final half-minute), seven assists and three rebounds in only 28 minutes. He was benched from 6:27 of the third to 5:51 of the fourth.
Nowitzki said Los Angeles' great shooting in the first half kept Kidd from being a factor, which knocked the whole team out of whack.
"It's hard to get out running when you have to take the ball inbounds every time," said Nowitzki, whose frustration about the first half was evident when he hurled the ball the length of the court after the buzzer.
Lamar Odom scored 17 points for Los Angeles and Ronny Turiaf had 17 points, 17 rebounds and lots of tenacious play.
Jackson was disappointed that his players let Dallas rally, especially since he warned them exactly what to avoid and they didn't listen.
"They were pretty thick-headed tonight," he said.
Terry and Howard scored 19 points for Dallas, which slipped to seventh in the West. With 24 losses, the Mavericks have the same amount as eighth-seeded Golden State, but lead the Warriors by three games in the win column.
The Mavericks can't let this loss linger as Boston comes to town Thursday night and San Antonio on Sunday, giving them two more chances to try beating a championship contender.
"If we come out and play focused basketball like we're capable of doing, we can beat anybody," Jerry Stackhouse said. "If not, we'll be hanging our heads down like tonight."
Game notes
Mavs security kept two more bloggers out of the locker room, as per team owner Mark Cuban's policy. ... Bryant shot 27 free throws last time the teams met. He had only six this time -- and made only three. ... Dallas' game against the Clippers next Tuesday will be shown live in 3D high definition to an invitation-only audience of 100 fans picked from the team's Web site. The 2007 All-Star Game and Game 2 of last year's NBA Finals are the only previous live sporting events shown in 3D HD.
http://sports.espn.go.com/nba/recap?gameId=280318006
"
Kidd isn't what we needed at all and we still did that shit...shit we need a quality bigman or a go-to swingman. We coulda got Kobe for Harris, Howard, and some picks this summer. Dallas and Chicago were at the top of Kobes list. Kobe and Gasol is nice but Kobe and Dirk CRUSHES that. 
I hope we just fall out the playoffs so save me from getting mad about another playoff fuck up. 
. He will get the Bulls into the playoffs and strong regular season. But back to the topic at hand. Jason Kidd as the poster said could never shoot the basketball.
