Game 6: Dallas at Portland (April 28) Gerald Wallace scored Portland's first 9 points and then Wesley Matthews drained a 3-pointer to give Portland a 12-5 lead with 8 minutes left as Portland had momentum early in this do-or-die game for them. 2 free throws by Wallace and a dunk by LaMarcus Aldridge gave Portland their largest lead at 19-7 with 5:50 remaining as Dallas shot just 2-11 FG (with 2 free throws) to open the game. But Dallas finally found their scoring touch and scored on their next 3 possessions (while Portland missed 4 straight shots) to pull within 15-19 with 3:40 to go. Portland did hang on to the lead as their lead see-sawed between 6 and 8 points over the rest of the quarter. Portland led 27-19 after 1. Portland shot 11-20 FG and 3-3 FT and Dallas shot 8-23 FG (6-12 after their poor start) and 2-2 FT. Wallace had 13 points and 6 rebounds. But Wallace's back tightened up late in the 1st quarter and the trainers took him to the locker room for the 2nd quarter to work on the back and he remained there through halftime (but, thankfully, was able to return in the 2nd half [I don't wish ill health to any players]). Consecutive jumpers by Brandon Roy opened the 2nd quarter and Dallas missed their first 7 shots of the quarter (including 4 on one possession) and Portland led 31-19 with 10 minutes to go. Rudy Fernandez flew at Peja Stojakovic and fouled him behind the arc and Stojakovic hit all 3 free throws to put Dallas on the board for the quarter 2:30 in. After a layup by Roy, Dirk Nowitzki converted a 3-point play (with rookie Chris Johnson committing the foul and then strangely glaring at Nowitzki) and after Portland missed and Nowitzki grabbed the rebound then Johnson grabbed Nowitzki around the neck and threw him down - the refs called a flagrant on Johnson [uncalled for play - it might have extended from the end of Game 5 when Johnson was leveled by a (good, legal) pick at halfcourt by Brian Cardinal)]. Nowitzki hit both free throws and, with Dallas keeping possession, Nowitzki hit his signature jumper - it was 7 points by Nowitzki in a quick 35 seconds - and pulled Dallas within 31-35 with 8:40 remaining. After a putback by Aldridge, Nowitzki scored his 9th straight Dallas points (on a nice feed by J.J. Barea) and Dallas scored 4 more points to tie the game at 35-35 with 6:35 left. After a layup by Matthews, Stojakovic hit a 3-pointer (with a pass from Barea) and Jason Terry nailed a 3-pointer on the push (with a pass from Barea) to give Dallas a 41-37 lead with 4:40 left. The teams traded buckets over the next few minutes and a layup by Nowitzki with 45 seconds left and a 3-pointer by Terry near the quarter buzzer gave Dallas a 52-43 lead at the half. Dallas pulled out the zone defense some in the 2nd quarter, but didn't use it much in this game (it was used extensively in Game 5). Portland also tried briefly some zone defense, but tossed it after Jason Terry easily drove baseline for a layup on the zone. For the 2nd quarter, Dallas shot 11-22 FG (11-15 FG after the first 2 minutes) and 8-8 FT and Portland shot 8-22 FG (including 0-5 3-pointers) and 0-0 FT as Dallas out-scored Portland 33-16. Nowitzki had 13 points and Terry had 10 points in the quarter. Jason Kidd opened the 3rd quarter with a jumper, as Portland lagged off of him expecting Kidd to pass (it was only his 3rd shot of the game and his first make). Wallace got back into the action with 2 buckets as part of a 5-1 Portland mini-run that pulled the Blazers within 52-59 with 6:20 remaining. But Dallas then scored the next 8 points (with buckets by 4 different players) to take a 67-52 lead with 3:35 left. A jumper by Terry gave Dallas their largest lead at 73-56 with 1:25 remaining. Wallace was fouled with a fraction of a second left in the quarter and hit both free throws. Dallas led 75-62 after 3. Dallas out-scored Portland 23-19 in the 3rd as Dallas shot 11-19 FG and 1-4 FT and Portland shot 6-17 FG and 6-9 FT (with Dallas getting in the penalty with over 6 minutes left in the 3rd quarter). Both teams had been incredibly clean with the ball with Dallas having just 3 turnovers through 3 quarters and Portland having 6. Portland continued to play strong, leaving Dallas with fears of a repeat of Game 4 where the Mavs blew a large lead. Portland opened the 4th quarter with a 9-2 run to pull within 71-77 with 9:50 left. It then became the Nowitzki-Aldridge show as the two seemed to trade buckets over the next few minutes with 3 jumpers by Nowitzki and 3 by Aldridge. A 3-pointer by Barea gave Dallas an 86-77 lead with 7:45 left, but Portland then scored the next 8 points, capped by a dunk on the break by Wallace, to pull within 85-86 with 5:25 to go as Dallas missed 3 straight shots and had a turnover (their 3rd of the quarter). But Kidd ended the run with a 3-pointer and then, after a steal by Kidd, Terry hit a jumper to give Dallas a 91-85 lead with 4 minutes to go. Portland missed and Nowitzki was called for an offensive foul (bad call) as the teams went scoreless over the next minute. Wallace hit 2 free throws with 3 minutes left to make it a 4 point game. Terry committed a sloppy turnover (Dallas' 5th of the quarter), but Aldridge missed badly, but he got the rebound and was fouled, but he missed both free throws with 2:35 remaining. Dallas got the ball to Shawn Marion in the post and he hit a short hook shot with 2:15 left to give Dallas a 93-87 lead. Marion gambled for a steal but got the foul instead and Wallace hit 2 free throws with 2 minutes remaining. But Terry hit a baseline jumper with 1:40 to go to give Dallas back the 6 point lead. Matthews missed a 3-pointer late in the shot clock and Kidd missed a 3-pointer, but Dallas got the rebound with 56 seconds left. But Terry committed another careless turnover with 45 seconds left and Portland called timeout. Wallace missed a 3-point attempt with 35 seconds to go and Portland started to intentionally foul. And Nowitzki came through in hitting 8-8 FT over the last 30 seconds of the game to not let Portland get back in it (Portland did hit a 3-pointer and 2 layups between Nowitzki's makes). Dallas won 103-96. Dallas takes the series 4-2 and advances to the 2nd round where they will face the LA Lakers. It was a tough, tough series and Game 6 was no different from the other games. It was the first time in the series that the home team lost. Dallas did again give up a big lead in Portland, but managed to not completely collapse and hang on for the win. Dallas' defense was not great in the 4th as Portland out-scored Dallas 34-28 in the 4th - the whistles were a little friendly to Portland in the 4th as Portland shot 12-14 FT in the quarter (Dallas did shot 8-8 FT, but all of those were on the intentional fouls). Dirk Nowitzki had 14 points in the 4th including 8 from the free throws. Gerald Wallace had 12 points in the 4th. Dallas tried to help Portland by committing 6 of their 9 turnovers in the 4th (including 2 sloppy unforced turnovers by Jason Terry - his first comment on his post-game interview was, "Let's not talk about the turnovers, okay, don't mention that."). But Dallas' shooting held true as Dallas shot 9-14 FG in the quarter. For the game, Dallas shot 50% (39-78) FG including 6-18 3-pointers and Portland shot 44.3% (35-79) FG including 5-21 3-pointers. Dallas shot 19-22 FT and Portland shot 21-26 FT. Dallas had 23 assists while Portland had 16 assists and just 7 turnovers. Portland had the slight edge in out-rebounding Dallas 41-39 including 15-12 offensive - the rebounds stayed close throughout the series as Dallas held a 238-226 rebounding in the 6 games. It was a team game for Dallas with solid performances from a number of players. Dirk Nowitzki was stellar with 33 points on 11-17 FG and 11-11 FT and 11 rebounds. Despite the 2 turnovers, Jason Terry did play very well and had 22 points including 9-16 FG and a game high 8 assists. Shawn Marion chipped in 16 points and 6 rebounds. Tyson Chandler had 9 points on 4-5 FG and (grumble) 1-4 FT and 7 rebounds, but it was his defense on LaMarcus Aldridge that shone through. It was against Brendan Haywood that Aldridge had his 4th quarter flurry, but once Chandler came back in to the game, Aldridge missed his last 3 shots. One article said that Aldridge shot 4-15 FG during the game when Chandler guarded him. That's not to say that Haywood was poor defensively - Aldridge hit some tough shots over him - just that Chandler was more effective. Haywood missed 3 shots and had 4 rebounds including 3 offensive in 15 minutes. Jason Kidd had 7 points and 6 assists, but his only 3-pointer came at a key moment in stopping Portland's 4th quarter rally. J.J. Barea played well in helping Dallas get back in the game in the 2nd quarter with a layup and 3 assists. He had 7 points, 4 rebounds, and 4 assists in 15 minutes. DeShawn Stevenson picked up 3 fouls trying to guard Portland's guards and played just 11 minutes and had 3 points on 1-3 FG. Peja Stojakovic only shot 1-7 FG (but his one make was a 3-pointer) and had 6 points in 24 minutes. Both teams went with 9-man rotations. Gerald Wallace was the man for Portland. It could have been a different game if he was available in the 2nd quarter with the way he was rolling in the 1st quarter (but you never know). Wallace had a career playoff high 32 points on 10-17 FG and 11-12 FT - he only struggled with the 3-pointer shot where he shot 1-6 3-pointers. He also had a game high 12 rebounds including 5 offensive. LaMarcus Aldridge was fairly quiet besides his 4th quarter flurry. Of course, fairly quiet for a rising star is 24 points including 11-25 FG. He did have a double-double with 10 rebounds including 6 offensive. Wesley Matthews had 19 points but shot just 5-14 FG. Marcus Camby had 2 points on 1-3 FG, 9 rebounds, and 2 blocks in 42 minutes. Andre Miller had just 5 points - the only time in the series he scored less than 14 points. Miller also had 4 assists and 3 rebounds in 25 minutes. Brandon Roy had 9 points, 3 rebounds, and 3 assists in 29 minutes. Rudy Fernandez had 3 points on 1-3 FG, 2 rebounds, and 2 assists in 13 minutes. Nicolas Batum missed 3 shots and had 2 assists and 4 fouls in 12 minutes. Chris Johnson hit his only shot and had 2 Dirk inspiring fouls in 5 minutes for a negative impact on the game. Quotes Rick Carlisle: "We played possession by possession, and as the game went on we gained momentum. That was important. They made a run in the 4th, but we've had teams make runs at us all year, and there wasn't going to be a miracle tonight." Carlisle: "“Tonight Nowitzki, Kidd, and Terry weren't going to let us lose the game. It's as simple as that." Carlisle: "The way the game started was tough. Getting down 12 early, that's some real adversity. Everybody stuck together. Nobody hung their heads. Everybody kept encouraging each other. We played possession by possession." Dirk Nowitzki: "It's definitely big for our confidence to win a road game in the playoffs. We haven't done it for a while so we definitely needed one. In this league, if you have a chance to close out a team, you always want to go for it. We talked about it before the game that this was kind of our Game 7. We didn't want to play again on Saturday." Nowitzki on Portland's rally: "We just had to keep fighting. It wasn't pretty again. They made a great run, kept making shots, kept making plays ... but we just refused to lose." Nowitzki on his free throws to close the game: "I'm a pretty good free throw shooter. I want the ball down the stretch when I know that they're fouling me. I made some clutch free throws, so that definitely felt good." Nowitzki: "I don't want to over rate this win. Our goal over the past 5 or 6 years is always to win the championship. We understand that to win it all you have to take the first step, and that's winning in the 1st round. We feel good about that, but we know we have a long way to go." Jason Terry: "We're such a confident team. We have so many veteran guys, starting at the top with Jason Kidd on down to Dirk, that we believe. Especially in close ballgames, we've been winning them all season long. So we're confident." Terry: "The coaches were challenging me and telling me, regardless of what happens on offense, defensively we need you alert, really taking ownership in your matchup. And they gave me a big assignment guarding Brandon Roy." Terry on defending Roy: "I just picked him up [full court] and pressured him, knowing that if I made him work, it would take some of the steam out of his legs as they got into the half court offense. He's the type of guy who needs his rhythm. He wasn't able to get that rhythm tonight." Jason Kidd on Portland's rally: "They're going to make a run. We saw it in Game 4, but everybody kept their composure." Kidd on his 3-pointer late in the game: "My teammates trust me. Especially coming down the stretch. I didn't know [the lead] got cut to 1 point. I just relaxed. I was in that situation in Game 4 where I rushed it. So I just took my time, and when JET threw it to me, I knew this was a good time to shoot that shot." Kidd: "We're not known for being a defensive team. We were communicating down the stretch and really trying to show them different looks. Game 4 really prepared us for that. As much as we were embarrassed, in the long run I think it was a good thing that it happened because we were in the same situation and the big thing is nobody panicked. Even just up 1, we just kept playing." Tyson Chandler on Nowitzki after Chris Johnson's flagrant foul: "Toughness doesn't always mean throwing a punch back or something like that. It means getting up and going at them even tougher. You're frustrated, and I think it was useful and it was the reason we won the game. Dirk got up and instead of getting into an altercation, he said, 'I'm going to punish you on the other end.'" Chandler: "We started going to our horses. We spread the floor and started going into Dirk and JET." Shawn Marion: "Coach made it a concept to get me a few plays. Everybody was really trying to make the concept to move the ball and we just were able to get a couple easy things going." Nate McMillan: "This whole series, any time we made a mistake, they made us pay. They made big shot after shot. Last game, it was offensive rebounding. Tonight, our guys competed. We got off to a good start. We lost Gerald for that 2nd quarter and lost a little momentum. It took us awhile to get going again. I appreciate and respect the effort our guys gave tonight." McMillan on Wallace: "I thought he just made up his mind he was going to attack and be aggressive. He got out in transition, he got to the offensive glass. We talked about someone needing to show that we weren't going to lose this game ... he was trying to make plays to give this team a lift right from the start. And he got off to an excellent start." LaMarcus Aldridge: "I think everybody played their hearts out tonight. I thought everybody gave it their all, we put it on the line. They just made more plays than us." Aldridge: "We felt like we could get back in the game, and we actually did. But they made plays. I mean, hey, they came to play." Aldridge on Wallace: "He was huge. He carried us. If he had been there in the 2nd, it could have been different." Aldridge: "I think with all the adversity we faced, it was a good year. But for us personally, this wasn't what we wanted. We wanted to advance and we wanted to go to the 2nd round." Gerald Wallace on his game: "I didn't want to go home. I wanted to get myself going early, try to get some energy going for my teammates, and let them feed off me. I did a pretty good job of that." Wallace on not playing in the 2nd quarter: "I felt like I let the team down in the 2nd quarter. It kind of killed the momentum. The guys were feeding off me." 2011 Playoffs - First Round: Game 6 Dallas Mavericks 103, Portland Trailblazers 96 at Portland (April 28) 1st 2nd 3rd 4th - Final 2FG 3FG FG% FT% Dallas 19 33 23 28 - 103 .550 .333 .500 .864 Portland 27 16 19 34 - 96 .517 .238 .443 .808 Halftime: Dallas 52-43 3rd Q: Dallas 75-62 Technicals: Dallas defensive 3 seconds 7:25 3rd Flagrant fouls: Chris Johnson (Por) (level 1) 7:25 3rd Refs: Monty McCutchen, Greg Willard, Gary Zielinski Attendance: 20,494 (sellout) IL: Dallas - Caron Butler, Dominique Jones, Corey Brewer Portland - Greg Oden, Elliot Williams, Luke Babbitt Dallas Mavericks REB Player MIN FGM-FGA 3PM-3PA FTM-FTA PTS O-T AST TO PF STL BLK Shawn Marion 33 7-15 0-0 2-2 16 4-6 1 0 3 0 0 Dirk Nowitzki 39 11-17 0-1 11-11 33 1-11 4 4 5 0 1 Tyson Chandler 33 4-5 0-0 1-4 9 2-7 0 0 1 0 1 DeShawn Stevenson 11 1-3 1-2 0-0 3 0-1 0 0 3 1 0 Jason Kidd 36 3-7 1-4 0-0 7 0-2 6 1 1 2 0 J.J. Barea 15 3-5 1-2 0-0 7 0-4 4 0 1 0 0 Jason Terry 34 9-16 2-5 2-2 22 1-3 8 3 1 0 0 Peja Stojakovic 24 1-7 1-4 3-3 6 1-1 0 0 0 1 0 Brendan Haywood 15 0-3 0-0 0-0 0 3-4 0 1 4 0 1 Totals 48 39-78 6-18 19-22 103 12-39 23 9 19 4 3 Portland Trailblazers REB Player MIN FGM-FGA 3PM-3PA FTM-FTA PTS O-T AST TO PF STL BLK Gerald Wallace 33 10-17 1-6 11-12 32 5-12 2 1 3 1 0 LaMarcus Aldridge 43 11-25 0-0 2-4 24 6-10 0 1 2 0 0 Marcus Camby 42 1-3 0-0 0-0 2 3-9 2 3 0 2 2 Wesley Matthews 38 5-14 2-7 7-7 19 0-2 1 0 0 0 0 Andre Miller 25 2-7 0-2 1-3 5 1-3 4 2 3 0 0 Nicolas Batum 12 0-3 0-2 0-0 0 0-0 2 0 4 0 1 Chris Johnson 5 1-1 0-0 0-0 2 0-0 0 0 2 0 0 Brandon Roy 29 4-6 1-2 0-0 9 0-3 3 0 3 0 0 Rudy Fernandez 13 1-3 1-2 0-0 3 0-2 2 0 1 0 0 Totals 48 35-79 5-21 21-26 96 15-41 16 7 18 3 3 Go Mavs! patricia ---- Patricia Bender pbender@eskimo.com For Trianglons puzzles: http://www.trianglons.com For NBA stuff: http://www.eskimo.com/~pbender/index.html For Mavs stuff: http://www.eskimo.com/~pbender/mavs.html