Dallas Mavericks rise in the clutch again; Stun Miami Heat 112-103 in Game 5 of NBA Finals – Part 1
The Dallas Mavericks held off a late charge by the Miami Heat to pull off a 112-103 win in the pivotal game 5 of the NBA Finals, leaving them just one win short of the first NBA World Championship in their history.
The Mavs were spearheaded by a healthy Dirk Nowitzki as the German produced yet another big display in the NBA Finals. Nowitzki’s game high 29 points included a high arching rainbow 3-point shot that brought the crowd to their feet. However, just like in game 4, the whole of the Mavs roster contributed in a big way.
The two Jason’s, Terry and Kidd, were huge down the stretch. Terry had 21 overall coming off the bench and also made 6 assists. Kidd had the same number of assists and scored 13 points. Tyson Chandler continued providing a reasonable offensive output with 13 and Jose Barea, who has been promoted to starter in the last two games, scored 17 points. He was amazing from beyond the arc as he nailed 4 of his 5 attempts.
Dallas coach Rick Carlisle was pleased with the effort but emphasized the need to keep focus on the challenge ahead,
"We made more shots," Carlisle said. "We did a lot of good things defensively, which led to good offense. ... You never know when the games are going to go that way. The thing we've got to do is we've got to make sure our defense is consistent."
For the Heat, Dwyane Wade led all scorers despite missing a chunk of the game with injury. Wade scored 23 points and also had 8 assists. LeBron James answered some of his critics with a triple-double display. LeBron had 17 points to go along with 10 rebounds and 10 assists. The last of the Big Three, Chris Bosh, recorded a double-double with 19 points and 10 boards. Mario Chalmers made a contribution of note as well with 15 points.
Unlike previous games in this year’s finals, game 5 was a high scoring affair and the first quarter set the tone. Both teams came out firing and scored freely in the opening period, with Dallas holding the advantage most of the way. Tyson Chandler has a great start to the game as he scored 9 points in the first quarter. With under two minutes remaining, the Mavericks led by six points at 27 – 21. The Heat however ended the period on top with a 10 – 3. Mario Chalmers put the cherry on top with an amazing buzzer beater from near the halfway line.
The second quarter was very close. The Mavs quickly levelled the scores at the start with a Jason Terry 3-point shot. However they Heat kept their own score ticking. They used an 8 – 3 run to stretch the gap to six points at 50 – 44, with 5:45 left on the clock. Dallas responded with an 8 – 2 run to tie the score at 52 – 52.and then ended the first half with an 8 – 3 charge to take the lead.
The teams went into halftime at 60 – 57.
Link for part-2: http://www.senore.com/Dallas-Mavericks-rise-in-the-clutch-again-Stun-Miami-Heat-112-103-in-Game-5-of-NBA-Finals-Part-2-a74734
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