Utah at Dallas (November 15) Ack. I knew I should have wrote this before the Portland game, which is seared in my mind right now. Anyways, it was an ugly game. The Mavs' offense was stagnant as usual and Cleamons' player rotation was horrendous. You'd think that if an older team played the night before you'd play a running game since the opponent is probably tired, but nooo, the Mavs stuck with the terribly executed triangle offense - which would often use the full 24 seconds. Dallas opened the game shooting 3-10 FG and committing 3 turnovers. Somehow the Mavs weren't yet being blown out and only trailed 22-17 after 1. Utah built their lead to 30-18 with 9:34 left. But the Mavs stayed in the game with the help of Michael Finley and Utah only led 41-36 at the half. [Ohhh, high scoring game.] Utah shot 47% (18-38) FG and Dallas shot 37% (15-41) FG. Malone had 10 points and 5 rebounds and Adam Keefe had 6 points and 5 rebounds. Finley had 14 points, A.C. Green head 9 points and 6 rebounds, and Shawn Bradley had 4 points and 8 rebounds.. Utah led 50-45 with 8:50 remaining. Utah then went on a 12-5 run, including 10 points from Malone, to go up 62-50 with 3:20 left. Utah led 64-55 after 3. Malone scored 12 points on 6-8 FG in the quarter. Utah led 73-60 with 8:23 remaining. Dallas made their usual 4th quarter rally behind the leadership of Erick Strickland to get within 75-71 with 3:07 left. And that was it. Malone hit a layup with 2:47 remaining. Finley threw a pass behind Strickland that went out of bounds. Malone hit a 20-foot jumper with 1:54 left to put Utah up 79-71. Utah won 85-77. I could add more comments about the sorryness of this performance (though not as much as I could Saturday night), but these two comments from the Utah papers give a good outside perspective. From Salt Lake Tribune: "The loss was the Mavericks' fifth in the row, which is no surprise, after a look at their offense. It seemed to consist either of one guy dribbling around until the shot clock ran down, or one guy hoisting a 20-footer as soon as he felt leather." The Utah Deseret News in response to Cleamons' quote of "We just have to iron some wrinkles out": "A few wrinkles? The Mavs have more wrinkles than that cotton shirt that's been wadded up at the bottom of your hamper since June." Quotes Jerry Sloan: "Give [Dallas] credit, they kept coming at us. And we've had a lot of people struggling. Everybody says Stockton isn't here, but other people have to do their jobs." Sloan: "Early in the game it looked like we were going to be able to play them decent, but then we quit executing. They kept coming at us. We had to make a couple of shots to win it." Karl Malone: "We realize [Stockton] isn't here, just like everybody in America realizes it. But we're not looking for anybody to feel sorry for us, and nobody will feel sorry for us. We're starting to play decent basketball again." Malone: "Our offensive execution was better tonight. And I thought our defense was really good. Anytime you do those things, you've got a chance to win." Malone: "I think our defense was really good. Anytime you start doing that you give yourself a chance to win. When we started off the season we didn't do those things. Now all of a sudden, we're giving ourselves the opportunity to win." Jim Cleamons: "We turned the ball over at critical times and they capitalized on it. We need to continue to learn to play together." Cleamons: "We have played well and there is definitely some growth taking place here. Now we need to get on an even keel and work on all cylinders. We're just trying to find some rhythm as a team." Cleamons: "Look at the quality of teams we're playing. Hopefully, we can get to the point that we execute a system the way [Utah] executes a system, so we can afford to lose a key piece like they have." Cleamons: "We're losing to quality teams, like the Jazz and the Lakers. I'm not trying to sell the fact that we're young and learning. It's a fact. We're going to suffer for a while. We have to deal with reality and be patient with one another." Cleamons: "We're not shooting well because we haven't learned where the shots are supposed to come from. But our attitude is good. We just have to play." Dennis Scott: "[The losing streak has] got to stop. You don't want it to get to 7, 8, 9 losses in a row. Then it becomes a national story." Scott: "It's frustrating in this offense we're trying to run in that you have to go to a spot, then react off a pass. We're looking up, having only 7 seconds on the shot clock, and having to go one-on-one all the time. The chemistry just isn't there." Michael Finley: "It's not fun to lose, and I don't want to get accustomed to losing. We don't have losers in this locker room, but we sure aren't winning." Utah Jazz 85, Dallas Mavericks 77 at Dallas (November 15) 1st 2nd 3rd 4th - Final 2FG 3FG FG% FT% Utah 22 19 23 21 - 85 .472 .333 .462 .786 Dallas 17 19 19 22 - 77 .400 .350 .387 .632 Halftime: Utah 41-36 3rd Q: Utah 64-55 Utah's largest lead: 73-60 8:23 4th Dallas' only lead: 2-0 10:57 1st Technicals: Karl Malone 1:54 1st, A.C. Green 1:54 1st Refs: Bill Oakes, Ken Mauer, Tony Brothers Attendance: 14,323 (cap 18,042) Utah Jazz REB Player MIN FGM-FGA 3PM-3PA FTM-FTA PTS O-T AST TO PF STL BLK Adam Keefe 24 2-3 0-0 2-3 6 3-4 1 0 1 1 0 Karl Malone 37 12-20 0-0 2-2 26 3-10 3 6 2 2 0 Greg Foster 23 4-7 0-0 2-2 10 1-5 0 1 3 1 0 Howard Eisley 31 4-9 0-1 1-2 9 0-4 4 1 3 1 0 Jeff Hornacek 31 4-11 1-1 0-0 9 3-5 10 0 1 3 1 Jacque Vaughn 17 3-6 1-1 0-0 7 0-0 4 0 1 0 0 Greg Ostertag 19 1-2 0-0 1-2 3 1-1 0 1 4 0 1 Shandon Anderson 17 2-6 0-0 0-0 4 0-5 1 3 0 0 0 Bryon Russell 24 2-8 0-3 2-2 6 1-3 0 0 1 2 0 Antoine Carr 17 2-6 0-0 1-1 5 0-4 1 3 5 0 0 Totals 48 36-78 2-6 11-14 85 12-41 24 15 21 10 2 Dallas Mavericks REB Player MIN FGM-FGA 3PM-3PA FTM-FTA PTS O-T AST TO PF STL BLK Dennis Scott 31 1-9 0-5 1-2 3 0-1 3 3 0 1 1 A.C. Green 45 6-9 0-0 1-2 13 3-10 1 2 2 0 0 Shawn Bradley 37 3-12 0-0 5-7 11 4-14 1 3 2 0 4 Michael Finley 43 9-19 2-5 1-2 21 3-4 7 3 1 1 0 Khalid Reeves 28 3-9 2-3 1-2 9 1-2 3 1 1 0 0 Erick Strickland 20 4-9 2-6 2-2 12 0-3 2 1 5 2 0 Samaki Walker 12 0-1 0-0 1-2 1 1-5 0 1 3 0 0 Hubert Davis 22 3-7 1-1 0-0 7 0-0 2 2 0 0 0 Chris Anstey 2 0-0 0-0 0-0 0 0-0 0 0 1 0 0 Totals 48 29-75 7-20 12-19 77 12-39 19 17 15 4 5 Dallas at Portland (November 17) You really want to read about this sorry excuse for a game? Well, Dallas got withing 11-10 with about 6 1/2 minutes left in the 1st quarter when it got _really_ ugly. How ugly? Portland scored the next 17 points for the quarter. Included in that span were 4 missed Dallas free throws - two each by Shawn Bradley and Samaki Walker. Dallas was being destroyed on the boards. Portland would have the ball until they scored, no matter how many shots they missed. Twice they got 3 offensive rebounds before scoring. In the quarter, Dallas shot 19% (3-16) FG and Portland shot 44% FG. Portland out-rebounded Dallas 23-7 including 10-2 offensive. Pathetic. Hard to believe the Mavs were the best rebounding team and 2nd best offensive rebounding team 3 seasons ago (94-95) [ I want Popeye back]. These players do not know how to rebounded. They just stand there and wait for the ball to fall in their hands. Rebounds are things you go get - they require hustle and effort. The Mavs could have at least blocked out to prevent the opponent from getting the board, but they are inept at that too. Portland led 28-10 after 1. I seriously considered simply turning off the TV after that pathetic first quarter. I wish I had. Though the rebounding domination by Portland slacked off a little bit, Portland's lead continued to grow. Portland scored the first two points of the quarter before Walker finally hit a basket for Dallas. Portland led 61-38 at the half. For the half, Portland out-rebounded Dallas 33-16 including 13-4 offensive. Arvydas Sabonis had 20 points on 10-10 FG and 9 rebounds. Portland had another run in the 3rd quarter. This time it was 15-2 behind Isaiah Rider to go up 85-53 with 1:16 left. Portland led 89-56 after 3. Like the rest of the game, the 4th quarter was pure garbage time. Though I have to frown at Portland's unsportmanship act at the end of the game of scoring (actually, dunking) twice with less than 20 seconds left instead of running out the clock. Portland won 120-75. The 45 point margin of defeat is the 4th worst in team history and 75 points scored is the 16th lowest. Quotes Mike Dunleavy: "We have tried to make defense and rebounding our signature. We really got after them early. And another thing I was pleased about was our 36 assists." Dunleavy: "Obviously it was a game we'd like to bottle. Two things stood out especially - our defense and our rebounding." Arvydas Sabonis: "[Bradley's] not very strong, not pushing me, and I felt comfortable." Isaiah Rider: "Basically, Sabonis and Brian Grant are cleaning up the boards. We're a big team, and everyone can rebound. We're big so we shouldn't let anyone outrebound us." Brian Grant: "It's been a good year for me so far on the boards. But when you've got a team like this, it's easy. You've got to box Sabonis out. You've got to box Rasheed out. You've got a guy like [Rider] who's slippery, so it's not like you can get two people honing in on you." Gary Trent: "That's what you want, everybody to play, everybody to have fun. There's a lot of guys on the bench who can play but the minutes just aren't there." Jim Cleamons: "We came out and were intimidated in the first quarter. We had no enthusiasm. Portland got every rebound. We sat around watching the Blazers jumping all over the place. If we weren't embarrassed by this performance, we won't ever be embarrassed." Cleamons: "We stood around watching and the Blazers were jumping around all over the place. If we weren't embarrassed by this performance, we won't ever be embarrassed." Cleamons: "We were like toys. The Blazers were doing anything they wanted to do." Dennis Scott: "I'm shooting the ball like I'm still 12 years old." Scott: "I guess it was that bad. That's the first time I think it was so bad that everyone's mind was gone. We just wanted to get out of there. Even in my expansion year in Orlando we never lost by 45. No question it was an embarrassment. We're a young team and all, but there's no excuse for that." Michael Finley: "It was a downright debacle. But still, it's too early to hang our heads and cry for help." Portland Trailblazers 120, Dallas Mavericks 75 at Portland (November 17) 1st 2nd 3rd 4th - Final 2FG 3FG FG% FT% Portland 28 33 28 31 - 120 .551 .500 .543 .619 Dallas 10 28 18 19 - 75 .410 .200 .368 .640 Halftime: Portland 61-38 3rd Q: Portland 89-56 Portland's largest lead: 120-75 final Dallas' last lead: 4-3 10:44 1st Technicals: none Refs: Ronnie Nunn, Ron Olesiak, Gary Benson Attendance: 20,033 (cap 21,538) Portland Trailblazers REB Player MIN FGM-FGA 3PM-3PA FTM-FTA PTS O-T AST TO PF STL BLK Brian Grant 24 2-7 0-0 0-0 4 6-13 0 0 2 2 1 Rasheed Wallace 29 3-5 0-0 2-2 8 0-3 4 1 1 1 0 Arvydas Sabonis 25 11-12 1-1 1-3 24 3-12 2 2 3 1 1 Isaiah Rider 28 7-19 3-8 2-2 19 1-4 7 2 1 1 1 Kenny Anderson 28 3-9 2-4 2-2 10 1-2 6 2 1 4 0 Gary Trent 25 7-12 1-1 1-2 16 4-6 4 1 4 1 1 Kelvin Cato 19 4-5 0-0 3-4 11 1-6 3 1 3 1 0 John Crotty 20 5-9 0-0 0-0 10 0-2 7 1 0 0 0 Stacey Augmon 7 0-1 0-0 1-2 1 0-1 0 0 1 1 0 Jermaine O'Neal 22 5-7 0-0 1-4 11 1-6 0 1 1 1 2 Alvin Williams 13 3-6 0-0 0-0 6 1-4 3 0 1 0 0 Totals 48 50-92 7-14 13-21 120 18-59 36 11 18 13 6 Dallas Mavericks REB Player MIN FGM-FGA 3PM-3PA FTM-FTA PTS O-T AST TO PF STL BLK Dennis Scott 32 5-16 2-7 0-0 12 0-7 4 2 2 0 1 A.C. Green 34 3-3 0-0 4-4 10 1-4 3 1 1 1 0 Shawn Bradley 26 3-6 0-0 0-2 6 1-5 1 2 2 1 1 Michael Finley 30 4-11 0-1 3-4 11 0-0 1 4 2 1 0 Khalid Reeves 19 3-7 1-2 2-3 9 0-1 0 0 1 0 0 Hubert Davis 15 1-2 0-1 1-1 3 1-1 0 0 0 0 0 Samaki Walker 24 4-6 0-0 1-4 9 2-7 0 3 2 1 0 Erick Strickland 19 0-6 0-4 1-2 1 0-0 1 1 1 1 0 Kevin Ollie 17 1-8 0-0 2-2 4 1-1 2 1 2 0 0 Bubba Wells 12 3-6 0-0 2-3 8 1-2 2 0 0 0 0 Chris Anstey 12 1-5 0-0 0-0 2 0-2 0 0 3 1 0 Totals 48 28-76 3-15 16-25 75 7-30 14 14 16 6 2 patricia