New Jersey loses by one point against Dallas, 87-86
Dallas Mavericks clinched a one-point lead over the New Jersey Nets at the Prudential Centre.
Dirk Nowitzki proved that he is awesome despite suffering a knee injury recently. The ace thumped his rivals with a whopping 23 points, seven rebounds and a powerful 7-for-24 shooting from the field.
He launched a fully charged midrange jumper to cut an 87-86 victory over the Dallas Mavericks on 22nd January, Saturday.
Kris Humphries and Brook Lopez did their best to build a solid wall in front of the victors. The players combined for 32 points and 21 rebounds against the “Mavs”.
Tyson Chandler stood out as the brightest star as he shot 19 points and grabbed eight rebounds for the winning team.
The game took place at the Prudential Centre, Newark, NJ. The lead changed 17 times and the game was tied 12 times as more than 14,000 people attended the game that had no technical fouls in it.
The Nets’s luck ran out when Shawn Marion propelled an air-ball by sorting out of Devin Harris’ step-back jumper. The game was breathing its last moments and there was less than a minute left on the buzzer when this happened.
Had the shot been savoured by New Jersey, they would have notched up three points instead of just one against the Mavericks. The leading team then took complete advantage of their offensive edge and held their breath while leading out of the game.
Coaches also feel vulnerable when their team is losing. Later the Nets coach Avery Johnson expressed his feelings at the loss when he described Nowitzki’s game-winning commodity as, "Since I can't jump that high, I wanted to take a broomstick and punch it
out".
Lopez seems to be coming back into his good form. The Nets centre pulled out 24 points, and grabbed six rebounds in the loss. The player was marked by his rivals but he overcame them and reeled past.
Players’ stats
Dallas Mavericks (28-15)
Nowitzki led the winning team with 23 points on a 7-for-24 shooting from the field. Chandler added 19 points and grabbed eight rebounds and Jason Terry trounced 11 points on a balanced play. The winning team grabbed seven team rebounds.
New Jersey Nets (12-32)
Lopez clinched a game high 24 points despite the loss. Harris added 15 and Sasha Vujacic contributed nine points to the box score. New Jersey grabbed 10 team rebounds.
Highlights
Mavericks entered the game with a high defence and took possession of 6-2 scoring over the losing team. They shot two 3-pointers whereas the opponents could only produce one. However, the Nets built up a 26-22 lead by the end of the first quarter.
New Jersey led in style with a variety of shots coming from Travis Outlaw and Vujacic. A foul by Jordan Farmar and Lopez each, earned the Mavericks more free throws than necessary and they closed the first half with a 48-45 lead over the Nets.
Dallas held the lead at many points in the third quarter but the Nets were chasing close. Both the teams had the scores at level and the game was tied a whopping seven times in the third quarter alone, closing the third chapter at 68-all.
The Nets could not build an offensive edge in the final quarter, and the Mavericks sealed a 87-86 lead over the opponent’s team.
More to watch
The Mavericks next take on L.A. Clippers, Houston, and Atlanta.
The Nets will take on Cleveland, Memphis, and Indiana.
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