The Mavs will beat the Pacers tonight and the Knicks Wednesday, both at American Airlines Center. And there’s nothing wrong with a 12-4 start.
But it will take more than a couple pedestrian wins to wash away last Saturday night’s final-minute implosion in Houston.
The Mavs had won six in a row and were coming off a 140-point night in a rout of the Lakers 24 hours earlier in Dallas.
Playing against a Rockets’ team without Dwight Howard, the Mavs fell in an 18-point hole but frantically dug out and managed to build a 91-86 lead on Monta Ellis’ jumper with 1:22 remaining.
Without their star and with their big lead vanished, the Rockets were dead. Or so we hoped.
Good, veteran NBA teams know how to close five-point leads in the final 80 seconds. The Mavs will do it 80 percent of the time, I’d say.
But not on this night.
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With the Mavs defending the 3-pointer, old friend Jason Terry drove for an easy layup to cut the margin to three. No problem. Houston fouled Ellis and he … missed one of his two free throws. Minor problem.
Up four, Ellis then fouled James Harden and just like that the lead was down to 92-90. Escalating problem. At the other end and with the shot-clock draining to two seconds after a horrible possession, Ellis forced and missed a 20-footer. Harden then seemingly charged into Chandler Parsons, but got the hoop and a free throw when the Mavs’ defender was called for a blocking foul.
Suddenly down a point, Ellis drove through the lane and jumped into the air, only to have Harden ready to block his fadeaway. Instead, Ellis threw a wild pass for a turnover. Trevor Ariza was fouled and made two free throws for a 3-point Rockets’ lead. Gigantic problem.
On Dallas’ final, futile possession, Dirk Nowitzki missed a 3-pointer before Ellis spun and launched a 3-pointer that caromed off the front rim.
The Mavs’ sad stats in the final 1:22: 1 point, 1 missed free throw, 1 turnover, 3 fouls, 3 missed shots.
One heartbreaking loss.
A native Texan who was born in Duncanville and graduated from UT-Arlington, Richie Whitt has been a mainstay in the Metroplex media since 1986. He’s held prominent roles on all media platforms including newspaper (Fort Worth Star-Telegram, Dallas Observer), radio (105.3 The Fan) and TV (co-host on TXA 21 and numerous guest appearances, including NBC 5). He currently lives in McKinney with his wife, Sybil, and two very spoiled dogs.
