Dallas Mavericks beat Portland Trail Blazers in Game 5 to lead series 3-2 – NBA Play-offs Update
Forward Dirk Nowitzki scored 11 of his game-high 25 points in the third quarter as the Dallas Mavericks beat the Portland Trail Blazers 93-82 in the fifth game to lead 3-2 in the National Basketball Association play-off series on Monday night at the American
Airlines Centre.
The Mavericks missed ten straight shots and provided the Blazers with an opportunity to lead the Western Conference best-of-seven quarter-final series 3-2.
Jason Terry came off the bench with 20 points while Tyson Chandler added 14 points and grabbed 20 rebounds, his highest of his play-off career.
Shawn Marion also had 14 points, four rebounds, three assists, and four steals while Jason Kidd had 14 assists in the victory.
Andre Miller ended with 18 points and seven assists while Gerald Wallace racked up 16 points and nine rebounds for Portland.
Forwards Nicolas Batum and LaMarcus Aldridge scored 12 points each for the Blazers, who ended the regular season at 48-34.
Brandon Roy, who was the leading scorer in the victory of Portland in the fourth game, could not contribute much in this game, as he ended with five points in the defeat.
The Mavericks went into the game with the strong support of 20,837 home crowd fans and managed to carry a 15-12 lead with three minutes to go in the first quarter. The Blazers were back into the game in the last two minutes of the quarter, as they went on
a 8-0 run to take a 20-15 lead into the second.
The sixth-seeded Portland maintained a strong shooting percentage in the first nine minutes of the second quarter and widened their lead to 43-37. Dallas responded with seven unanswered points in the last two minutes of the quarter, taking a 44-43 advantage
into the locker-room.
The 32-year-old Marion hit a turnaround jump shot early in the third quarter to put the Mavericks ahead by 52-49 for good, giving them their first lead of the game. The dazzling Nowitzki scored 11 of his points in the third as Dallas carried a 75-63 lead
into the final period.
The third-seeded Mavericks came out invigorated in the fourth quarter and maintained their double-digit lead throughout the fourth quarter to seal the victory.
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