Dallas Mavericks wrestle down Miami Heat in the clutch to win game 4 of NBA Finals
– Part 2
Link for Part-2: http://www.senore.com/Dallas-Mavericks-wrestle-down-Miami-Heat-in-the-clutch-to-win-game-4-of-NBA-Finals-Part-1-a74296
Dirk Nowitzki was clearly not a hundred percent and scored just 3 points in the third quarter. Therefore his teammates had to carry much of the offensive load as they battled a rugged Miami Heat side. The Dallas Mavericks overtook
the Heat after the interval but couldn’t build on their advantage. The game followed the same trend that has unearthed in the series so far. The scores remained very close going into the final two minutes of the frame but the Heat slowly regained the lead.
At the end of the third period they led by 4, at 69 – 65.
Five quick points by the Miami Heat at the start of the final period gave them a 9 point lead with 10:11 remaining and forced Dallas to call a timeout. The Mavs came back strong and Jason Terry scored four straight. From that point
on, the Mavs had the momentum on their side.
Dirk Nowitzki knocked down two free throws to start a 13 – 2 run for the Mavericks that saw them take a four point lead with just over 2 minutes left on the clock. Miami got within a point of Dallas after a free throw by Dwyane
Wade and the sell-out crowd seemed to get nervous. However Nowitzki made a crucial layup that saw that proved to be decisive.
Jason Terry converted from the line after Wade had responded and the Heat failed to get a good shot off on the last possession, giving the Mavs another great comeback win.
In a tight game the Mavericks were second best at shooting from the floor and on the boards. They did however have a better percentage from downtown, 21.1 percent compared to 14.3 percent from the Heat, which ultimately proved
to be the game changer.
Dallas’ defence stifled the Miami Heat at the end of the game and LeBron James pretty much disappeared from the floor. Dallas’ hard work paid off as they got the stops in that allowed them to win the game.
"We just played with incredible heart and passion," Dallas centre Tyson Chandler said of his team’s effort at the end.
Dirk Nowitzki echoed those sentiments in his post match interview, which he gave while sniffing,
"Just battle it out," Nowitzki said, "This is the finals. You have to go out there and compete and try your best for your team. So that's what I did."
Nowitzki’s game winning performance, especially in the final quarter where he scored 10 of his 21 points, reminded NBA fans of Michael Jordan’s epic 38 point NBA Finals performance with a 103 degree temperature back in 1997. Dirk
was not as dominant as MJ, but he got the job done.
Nowitzki also had some bad news for the Miami Heat as he rejected any fears that he might not be available for game-5 because of the illness,
"There's no long term," Nowitzki said. "I'll be all right on Thursday. ... Hopefully I'll get some sleep tonight, take some meds and be ready to go on Thursday."
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