Ty Lawson leads as Denver Nuggets rout the Dallas Mavericks 115-93: NBA Recap
The start of the NBA season for the reigning champions Dallas Mavericks could have been worse.
After being blown away by last year’s finalists Miami Heat, the Mavs took on the Denver Nuggets on their home turf, and surprisingly enough, the result was much the same if not worse. The Nuggets were the better team in the first
quarter and then blew away with a 22-1 run deep in the second quarter to seal the game at 115-93.
The game started well for the Mavs, who raced onto a 9-6 lead within the first three minutes. In the next 2:10, the two teams combined for seven missed attempts from the floor. Ty Lawson put an end to the cold spell by first knocking
down a three and then making two free throws, giving the Nuggets a 11-9 lead in the process. That advantage was however short lived as Brendon Haywood and Jason Kidd made consecutive two’s to put the Mavs ahead.
The to and fro action continued and the game was tied at 18 with 3:55 to go in the first period. That was the stage where Al Harrington took over. He started with a driving reverse layup and then finished a 14-5 burst with two
consecutive strikes from the long range. The Nuggets went into the second frame with a 32-23 and after Dallas made it a six point game (41-47) midway, they pulled away with a 20 point unchallenged run.
With 44.9 seconds to go in the interval and the Mavs staring at a humongous 67-41 deficit, Dirk Nowitzki made a free throw to take his score into double figures. Nene responded with a layup on the next possession though as Nuggets
stormed into the break with a 69-42 advantage.
Ty Lawson led the Nuggets with 21 at the break while Harrington and Andre Miller had 14 apiece. The Mavs tried to come hard after the break, but every time they tried to make inroads, there was always a counter punch ready to be
delivered by the Nuggets, who were turning their defence into the offense. Despite of 10 Nowitzki points in the third, the Bronchos outscored the Mavs 28-26 and took a 97-68 lead into the fourth quarter.
Al Harrington made it 99-68 inside the first 25 seconds of the fourth before Sean Williams made consecutive baskets for the Mavs, who reeled off an 11-2 spurt minutes later. With the game done and dusted, Rick Carlisle gave chance
to his bench in the last quarter, much like George Karl, his opposite number. The battle of the benches was won by the Mavs, who outscored the Nuggets 25-18 in the fourth quarter.
Lawson finished the game with 27 points on a 10-of-15 shooting while Al Harrington and Miller had 18 apiece. Gallinari also chipped in with 15 points and 7 rebounds’ Aaron Afflalo had 11 while ex-Maverick Rudy Fernandez only shot
2 of 8 for 8 points.
Five Mavs scored into the double figure, but except Nowitzki (20), no one made above 12.
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