Share
Have more to add? News tip? Tell us
In the space of 24 hours, the Mavericks saw it all.
Good, bad, ugly _ and a bit of a gag reflex.After a spirited win in which everything went right in the fourth quarter, they looked like they were ready for an encore Wednesday night at New Orleans Arena.And then, everything that could go wrong did. And the Mavericks had nobody to blame but themselves.When Peja Stojakovic _ 0-for-7 to that point _ flipped in a tying 3-pointer with 6.7 seconds to play, the Mavericks knew they’d botched a game they should have won. The proceeded to get drilled in overtime, dropping a 114-107 decision to the Hornets, ending a three-game winning streak.Against Utah on Tuesday? Dirk Nowitzki had 40 points, 29 in the fourth quarter and the Mavericks could do no wrong.Against New Orleans on Wednesday? They missed four free throws and had a turnover _ and that was all in the last 13.1 seconds of regulation.“That’s why you got to finish it out,’’ Jason Kidd said. “Everything went wrong that could go wrong to lose the game. It’s a lesson learned. The game of basketball can be nice and it can be cruel. We didn’t waste any time to see both sides.’’The Mavericks had gone from five points down after three quarters to up 96-92 after Erick Dampier’s put-back with 16.5 seconds left in the fourth quarter. Dampier was on his way to a 16-point, 14-rebound night.David West scored quickly for New Orleans and Jason Terry was fouled immediately.It was Terry who was doing a splendid fourth-quarter impersonation of Dirk Nowitzki. He had 18 points in the period after Nowitzki had 29 in the fourth on Tuesday.But Terry missed the first of two free throws. J.J. Barea played excellent defense and drew an offensive foul on Chris Paul with 9.5 seconds left. That seemed to clinch it, especially after Hornets coach Byron Scott was whistled for a technical.But Terry missed the technical free throw and Barea then missed two free throws.Sure enough, with the door open, Stojakovic made his only impact on the game a huge one.New Orleans outscored the Mavericks 9-2 to start the overtime, eliminating any drama.Call it whatever you want to, a collapse or a meltdown. But the Mavericks knew they had given away a game they had no business losing.“I take a lot of responsibility, being one of the best free-throw shooters in the league and missing (three) in one game,’’ Terry said. “Just make one and we’d already be on the plane. We had ‘em beat, no question.’’Terry did more than his share of the heavy lifting with 35 points. He made all six of his shots in the fourth quarter, when the Mavericks didn’t have Dirk Nowitzki at the end after he fouled out.“Dirk fouling out was a very difficult break for us,’’ coach Rick Carlisle said. “The opportunities were there and we played a great game. It wasn’t a particularly pretty game, but we battled and put ourselves in position to win. But NBA basketball is 48 minutes and on consecutive nights, strange things can happen.’’Inspired hire
@Nyx.CommentBody@