The outcome wasn't immediately obvious, however. In fact, Dirk Nowitzki (who finished with 31 points, 20 rebounds) got into foul trouble in the 1st quarter. A weird quarter that started out slow in scoring for both teams, but ended with a 25-16 lead for Dallas.
Even though Boston was having trouble defending the boards, the rim, and knocking down shots, they stuck around until the 4th quarter when Dallas stretched their lead to 15+.
Nothing in the world could bring Boston back into this game. They just kept shooting poorly, turning the ball over and failing to stop Dallas on the other end whenever they managed to score a bucket. After cutting the lead to 9 to end the 3rd, Boston had nothing left.
OJ Mayo scored 20 for Dallas, Shawn Marion had 14, Vinsanity had 12, and center Chris Kaman yanked down 18 rebounds. Clearly, Dallas dominated the boards as Boston fired away from three-point land to no avail, making only 15-47 overall. Boston's shooting woes were highly visible, 35% compared to that of the Mavericks (52%).
This will undoubtedly hurt Boston's already slim chances of overtaking the Miami Heat (who won't give an inch) in the standings, but with only 13 games left in the season, perhaps Boston should concede the #1 spot to Miami and start resting their stars for the most important time: the playoffs. Maybe they'll still win enough, and somehow surprise Miami.
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