Mavericks Keep it Close Early, Lose Big Late 109-95

Dirk Nowitzki complains to the referee after being called for a foul in the third quarter. The Nuggets were 25-36 from the free throw line, Dallas was 9-13.

The Dallas Mavericks laid an egg in the second and fourth quarters' of this one, as they were outscored 35-23 in the 2nd and 27-20 in the fourth. Their inability to hold onto the ball also led to their demise as they committed 20 turnovers as a team, the Mavericks were 5th fewest in the NBA in turnovers for the regular season at 12.7 per.

Denver's defensive philosophy towards Dirk Nowitzki didn't work as he went off for 28 points on 12-22 shooting. Although he consistently went to the basket the entire game, Dirk only had 4 trips to the free throw line to show for it. He also had 10 rebounds 4 assists 2 steals and a block for the game. Jason Terry, Jason Kidd, and Josh Howard each scored 15 points and the Mavericks did shoot 48% for the game. Unfortunately for Dallas, Denver shot 54%.

3 Keys to a Blowout Loss:

1. Interior Defense: After Erick Dampier came down with an ankle injury in the first quarter, he was largely ineffective for the rest of the game. Ryan Hollins came into the game and although he had OK stats (6 boards and 6 points) he looked lost out there. Brandon Bass gave just about nothing off the bench as he had 2 points and 2 rebounds in 14 minutes. None of these three had an answer for Denver center Nene as he had a career playoff high with 24 points on nearly 70% shooting for the night to lead the Nuggets in scoring. As a team, Denver had 40 points in the paint through 3 quarters and ended the game with 52. That's almost half of their total points (109) for the game going to the basket. If the Mavericks want to get out of the second round of the playoffs they are going to have to stop penetration that lead to easy baskets.
   
2. Jason Kidd: Kidd did have 15 points and 4 assists but was far too careless with the ball and committed a Mavericks playoff record 8 turnovers. His sloppy play led to Dallas having 20 turnover's and Denver scoring 25 points off those turnovers. If Dallas wants to win this series they have to be able to expect that their veteran PG can hold onto the ball. On a good note, Kidd did give Billups some problems on the defensive end as he only shot 2-8 from the field and had 4 turnovers himself.
   
3. Role Players: Aside from Dirk, J-Ho, J-Kidd and Jason Terry who combined for 73 points; the rest of the Mavericks team (7 players) combined for 22 points. This is completely the opposite of how these players (Barea, Dampier, and Bass specifically) played against San Antonio. Barea started the game again for the Mavericks but was held in check with 4 points and 5 assists. These players need to step up if Dallas hopes to even the series tomorrow night.
   

There are plenty of excuses the Mavericks can use after this game 1 loss in Denver: It was on the road, J-Ho and Damp went out early with injuries and then were mostly ineffective upon return, the free throw shooting disparity, etc. But the truth is the Mavericks lost this game because of poor ballhandling, careless passes, and overall sloppy play. Although the final score tells a different story, the Mavericks had plenty of chances to win this game. There were 9 ties and 10 leads changes throughout, so I don't see Dallas hanging their collective heads in the locker room. The Mavs know this series is long from over and as I have always felt, the series doesn't start until somebody wins on the road. I'm sure Dallas hopes this series will start on Tuesday.