The Mavericks continue to have stretches of dominance on the defensive end as they have now won three straight games. (AP Photo/Mike Fuentes)The Dallas Mavericks (35-21) continue to have at least one lock-down defensive quarter in each of the past three games. It appears the blockbuster trade has brought them two players that are paying immediate dividends on the defensive end.
Saturday night against the Miami Heat (29-28), the lock-down quarter was the third. After allowed 52 points in the first half, the Mavericks held the Heat to only 12 points in the third quarter. Dallas forced six turnovers and Miami made only 5-13 shots from the field in the quarter. As usual, Jason Kidd led the charge defensively with three steals and a block, but the 15-year veteran had another trick up his sleeve going into the fourth.
After nailing a three-pointer to put Dallas up 71-64, with 1:50 left in the third quarter, Kidd scored the first 11 points of the fourth quarter for the Mavs. Kidd scored inside (diving to the basket for a lay-in on his first score of the quarter), he scored outside (2-2 from deep in the quarter) and even used some of his wily veteran trickery to draw a foul after Carlos Arroyo left his feet a bit too early. When the dust settled, Kidd was 3-3 from the floor, 6-7 from the free throw line and had scored over-half (14) of his teams 26 fourth-quarter points.
"After the All-Star break, he's been phenomenal," said Dirk Nowitzki, who had a game-high 28 points. "He's been pushing the ball and scoring."
Kidd finished the game one point off of his season-high of 22, while also dishing out 11 assists for his ... double-double of the season. With Dallas playing their fourth game is five nights, it's an encouraging sign that their oldest player is the one leading the charge.
The Heat, who were without Dwyane Wade for the third straight game, gave the Mavs their best shot in this one. Daequan Cook led Miami with 22 points off the bench (3-5 from downtown) and Jermaine O'Neal scored 18 points and grabbed 13 boards.
"I think overall we played well without Dwyane," said Udonis Haslem, who had eight points and eight rebounds off the bench. "We gave ourselves a chance to win. They just made plays and we didn't."
The Dynamic Duo
Dirk Nowitzki and Caron Butler put on quite a show in the first quarter. Batman and Robin scored the first 20 Mavericks' points, and 24 of the first 25 going into the second quarter.
Nowitzki hit his first four shots, while Butler hit his first six as that one-two punch kept Dallas in the game while the rest of the team struggled.
From the start of the game to 9:11 left in the second quarter:
Nowitzki & Butler -11 of 15
Other Mavs - 0 of 7
Eddie Najera was the first other Mavericks player to make a basket, with 7:50 left in the second, on a lay-up.
Nowitzki finished with a game-high 28 points, and Butler had his highest scoring game for Dallas with 20 points on 7-13 shooting.
Terry Has Worst Game Of Season
Things did not go well for Jason Terry Saturday night against the Heat.
Terry tied his season-low for points (4), and missed all 10 of his shots while going 0-6 on threes - many of them open looks. The last time Terry didn't make a basket in a game was Dec. 26, 2007, against the Utah Jazz.
What's Next
This is a good sign for the Mavs, as they are beginning to build some cohesion with their new additions. An excellent win for Dallas, even though Miami was without Wade, on the fourth game in five night.
Dallas gets a day off Sunday before taking on the Indiana Pacers at home on Monday. In their only other meeting of the season, the Mavs won on the road 113-92.
The Pacers are 19-36 and only 7-21 on the road, but won Saturday night in Houston 125-115. Indiana had lost four straight before Saturday night's victory.
Tip-off is at 7:30 and can be seen locally on Fox Sports Southwest.
News and Notes:
- With 11 points and 11 rebounds, Brendan Haywood had his first double-double as a Maverick. Haywood now has 15 double-doubles this season.
- Jason Terry has failed to reach double-digits in a game seven times this season. Dallas is 4-3 in those games.
(Portions of this article were taken from The Associated Press)
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