Dirk Nowitzki stuns Oklahoma City Thunder; Dallas Mavericks win 112-105 in O.T. (Part 2)
The Dallas Mavericks were charged up coming out of the interval and looked to stamp down on Oklahoma City Thunder’s rampant offence in the 3rd quarter. But, just when Dallas looked like closing down on the Thunder, OKC
went on a 9 – 2 run to give themselves an 11 point cushion with 4:49 left in the quarter. The Mavericks responded with a 14-5 surge to cut the lead down to just two points. Overall, Dallas edged the quarter with Jason Terry leading the way as he scored nine,
but couldn’t make significant enough inroads as they trailed once again at the end.
Oklahoma City started the final period of regulation time with an 11-4 run to take a double-digit lead with under eight minutes left to play. They comfortably maintained the same and the game looked to be dead and buried with 2:33
left to play and the score at 101-91.
However, a certain mister Dirk Nowitzki wasn’t done just yet.
Nowitzki took the ball and the game into his hands in the final stretch and brought Dallas level almost entirely on his own. Dallas scored 10 straight in the last 2:22 and Nowitzki scored 9 of them. He started off with a huge three
pointer after being set up by Jason Kidd. He then followed with two quick jump shots as Dallas closed in. On the other end, OKC just couldn’t get anything to fall and Nowitzki finally levelled the scores with two from the line. Kevin Durant was blocked by
Shawn Marion from beyond the arc on the next possession and the game went into overtime at 101 – 101.
It was Nowitzki again who gave Dallas their first lead of the game in overtime. OKC tried to claw back and tied twice, but their spirit seemed broken. By that time Nowitzki’s support cast had also awakened and they saw out the
game for the Mavericks. Jason Kidd and Jason Terry hit the final four free throws that sealed the Thunder’s fate at 112 – 105.
There was shock on both sides at the finish. The Thunder and the whole Oklahoma City Arena crowd were both stunned at the manner of their defeat, still struggling to come to grips at what had transpired in the closing stages of
normal time. On the other hand, Dallas couldn’t hide their delight at the win and centre Brendan Haywood admitted he was as surprised as anyone in the arena,
"You're lying if you're not surprised. Down 15 with 5 minutes to play you're thinking hopefully something can happen," Brendan Haywood said. "You're just kind of wishing."
The Mavs head coach Rick Carlisle had nothing but praise for his team after the game. He said they showed great strength as they kept going in the face of a pumped up OKC team and a hostile crowd,
"It was all about getting stops at the end. This team has been a resourceful group and extremely opportunistic. The way they hung in there was fantastic."
The loss for the Thunder is hard to explain. They shot better than Dallas from the field, with 46.7 percent compared 43.2 percent by the Mavs. OKC also murdered the Mavericks on the glass 55-to- 33 and had a whopping 20-to-5 advantage
on the offensive boards. Oklahoma City led from the first minute and they did not trail in normal time.
To still lose a game is really harsh on the Thunder. In the end it came down to their inexperience and the splendid play of a very, very special player - Dirk Nowitzki.
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