The 7-4 Dallas Mavericks head into AT&T Center in San Antonio, Texas where they expect to take some pay back to the Spurs. Dallas is coming off a win in Washington where they were able to put up some string numbers in spite of playing the majority of the fourth quarter with their bench. The Mavs' defense hasn't been strong so far, and San Antonio is more than capable of an up tempo running game with Tony Parker and Manu Ginobili. Still, don't expect a shootout. The last time both teams reached 100 in the same game was March 5, 2004.
The Mavericks held Washington to 29 second-half points, turning a tight game into a 107-80 blowout Tuesday night at American Airlines Center. The Mavs finished off a perfect four games in five nights stretch and extended their overall winning streak to seven.
Dirk Nowitzki scored 30, including a three-pointer to tie the game at 58-58 and start a 21-6 run to end the third quarter. The lead would grow to 31 in the fourth as Dallas won its sixth straight game against Washington. Nowitzki added 14 boards for his ninth double-double in 11 games. Devin Harris and Jason Terry had 18 points each, and watched the final 3:46 with Nowitzki after Johnson cleared his bench. Anthony Johnson had 11 points in 17 minutes. The bench also came through, with Greg Buckner and Austin Croshere each scoring in double-figures, and DeSagana Diop grabbing 13 rebounds.
Finally reaching what seems like game shape, Monday night Manu Ginobili scored 18 of his season high 25 points in the final 10 minutes as the Spurs fought off Portland 107-98 at the Rose Garden. Ginobili, who had been struggling with his shot for much of the season, hit three three-pointers and produced two basket-and-foul three-point plays in the fourth quarter. He also slowed Portland's comeback attempts with a pair of steals.
Wednesday night he was back again. Tim Duncan scored 19 points, and Tony Parker and Manu Ginobili each added 17 for the Spurs. Brent Barry had 15 points and Beno Udrih, who may be proving to be a reliable backup to Parker, added 13 for the Spurs, who had an easy time of it against the Shaq less Miami Heat. The defending NBA champions seemed frustrated and confused while complaining about a lack of communication and being in a funk. Despite outscoring the Spurs in the final quarter, Miami got no closer than 19, even after both coaches pulled their starters.
We like the home team favorite for this match up. San Antonio gives up 4½ points that we consider are a fair enough difference for the final buzzer. San Antonio can easily win by 5. The total is 190½, bet the under, these two spend a quarter measuring up always and finally get into a pair of running quarters to later protect the lead in the fourth.
