Mavs with big opportunity to take control of series against OKC
After a game coach Rick Carlisle called "one of the most disappointing in franchise history," the Dallas Mavericks turned the tables on the Oklahoma City Thunder.
Dallas' scoring woes, however, could worsen with Dirk Nowitzki's condition.
With Nowitzki expected to play through a bruised right knee, the banged-up Mavericks hope to keep putting the pressure on the Thunder on Thursday night as this deadlocked series shifts to the American Airlines Center.
Dallas suffered a scare Monday when Nowitzki fell early in an 85-84 road victory in Game 2 before his knee swelled up on him that night. The 13-time All-Star is day to day but will have had two days to recover from what is being called a bone bruise.
"He's a great player who's been a big part of any success we've had this year," coach Rick Carlisle said of his leading scorer. "Without him we wouldn't be in the playoffs."
Nowitzki joins a list of players who could be limited or sidelined for Game 3, including starting guards Deron Williams and J.J. Barea and backup forward David Lee. Backup Devin Harris has been trying to play through a torn ligament in his thumb.
Williams scored 13 points on Monday before having to leave in the third quarter. He's dealing with a sports hernia injury that will require offseason surgery,
"We know from a manpower standpoint we're at a pretty big disadvantage," Carlisle said. "And we know we're not going to outrun or outdunk or outskill these guys."
Nowitzki is averaging 17.5 points as the only Maverick to reach double digits in both games. After shooting 29.8 percent en route to the lowest postseason scoring effort in franchise history, the Mavericks got up to a more respectable 42.7 percent in Game 2.
Raymond Felton came up big with 21 points and a career playoff-high 11 rebounds. He missed two free throws with 7.1 seconds left, but Dallas stole home-court advantage in the series when Steven Adams' tip-in was determined to be after the final buzzer.
"We have to be better," Thunder star Kevin Durant told the team's official website. "We have to be more physical on the offensive end and play with more pace."
Durant could easily have been talking just about himself after missing 26 of 33 shots and committing seven turnovers in Game 2. No one had attempted that many shots and made so few in an NBA game since Jerry Stackhouse went 7 for 34 while playing for Detroit on Feb. 3, 2001.
The Mavericks, who said they did a good job of being physical with Durant, had allowed an average of 111.6 points while dropping the first five meetings this season.
Durant's 26 misses Monday were his most in 716 career regular season and playoff games. He went just 1 for 11 from the field when Wesley Matthews guarded him.
After Durant and Russell Westbrook, no other player finished with more than 12 points for Oklahoma City, which owns a 110-78 advantage on the glass in the series.
"This is going to show what type of team we are â how we respond," guard Dion Waiters said. "We have to take care of business. We have to come together as a whole, like we've been doing the whole year, and bounce back."
Although they've stifled the Mavericks defensively overall, the Thunder are focused on improving after allowing them to score on eight of their final 13 possessions Monday. Billy Donovan was also concerned with an offense that bogged down around Durant and totaled just 11 assists, its fewest in 120 games.
"We can't lose sight or focus on the things we have control over in trying to make improvements," Donovan said.
