Dirk Nowitzki leads Dallas Mavericks past Los Angeles Lakers 93-81 – NBA Update
Dirk Nowitzki chipped in 24 points, as the Dallas Mavericks topped the Los Angeles Lakers 93-81, to take a 2-0 lead in their Western Conference semi-final series on Monday.
J.J. Barea posted 12 points while Shawn Marion added 14 points and nine rebounds for the Mavericks, who came off a surprising victory over the Lakers 96-94.
Kobe Bryant notched 23 points while Andrew Bynum scored 18 points and 13 boards for Los Angeles, which missed its first 15 three-point tries. Pau Gasol donated 13 points and 10 rebounds in the loss.
Los Angeles Coach Phil Jackson was not satisfied with his side's performance. He said after the game, "Our guys were tired out there, but I don't think it's contagious from two years ago, previous year or three years ago being in the Finals. It looked like
Mavericks had more energy on the floor than we did, and that's concerning."
Ron Artest, who collected 11 points, was ejected with less than a minute remaining in the final quarter after clothes-lining Mavericks guard J.J. Barea with a hit to the head. It may lead to a suspension.
DeShawn Stevenson made a three-point play to ignite an 8-1 Mavericks push in the first period, putting the visitors up by three points, 17-14. Dallas held a 26-20 advantage at the end of the opening quarter.
Barea drove for a layup with less than eight minutes to play in the half that gave the Mavericks a 37-30 lead. However, Los Angeles responded with the next 10 points, capped by a layup from Bynum. Nowitzki then drilled a turn-around jumper in the last minute
of the second period to give the Mavericks a 51-49 half-time edge.
Both teams shot just under 32 percent in the third frame, but Dallas was able to maintain its advantage all the way through the third period.
Stevenson knocked down a three-pointer to give Dallas a 56-50 advantage less than two minutes in. The Mavericks then held a 68-60 lead when Marion scored a layup in the last minute.
The Mavericks extended their lead to 79-69 mid-way through the final period when 6ft Barea penetrated and dished to Brendan Haywood on the left base-line for a dunk. It was in the middle of a 9-0 burst for Dallas.
Mavericks’ Coach Rick Carlisle said, "His penetration is a big part of our game. We're playing a lot of this right now without making play calls because these guys are so good at locking into stuff. At the moment our guys trust each other, trust the pass.
They are using the space on the floor and we have been able to set good screens."
Barea then got a clean shot to the basket for a layup with less than five minutes remaining that gave the Mavericks a 84-69 lead to put the game away. The double-digit advantage was in place the rest of the way.
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