Mavs Lose To Heat

By Walter Villa, The Sports Xchange

MIAMI — Dallas Mavericks power forward Dirk Nowitzki is well aware of the scouting report on Miami Heat point guard Goran Dragic, who is known for his ability to finish at the rim.
On Thursday night, however, Dragic did a bit of everything, scoring a game-high 32 points to lead Miami to a 99-95 victory over Dallas at AmericanAirlines Arena.
In a battle between the two lowest-scoring teams in the league, Dragic took over in the second half. He had just 10 points at the break but scored 11 in both the third and fourth quarters.
Dragic clinched the win with two free throws with three seconds left, but Nowitzki said he thought the play of the game came with 2:17 left in the fourth quarter.
“(Heat guard Dion) Waiters threw the lob up to (Hassan) Whiteside, (Dallas guard) Wes (Matthews) deflected it, and the ball goes to (Dragic), and he hits the big three to go up five (90-85),” Nowitzki said, breaking down the play.
“(Dragic) was shooting the ball well today. When he is shooting like that … he has the in-between game and the drive to the hoop … he’s tough.”
Indeed, Dragic, who totaled just two assists, was looking for his shot in this game, making 11 of 15 from the floor, including 4 of 4 on three-pointers. He committed just one turnover and made 6-of-10 free throws.
But Dragic did have help. Tyler Johnson, who came off the bench to score 23 points, followed Dragic’s big shot with another 3 on the Heat’s next possession. That gave Miami a 93-87 lead, and the Heat hung on from there.
It was the third time this season that Dragic has scored over 30 points in a game.
“He’s playing with extreme confidence,” Waiters said of Dragic, who played the entire fourth quarter. “He’s attacking.”
Heat coach Erik Spoelstra also praised Dragic, talking about how his game has “evolved so much” with his three-point and mid-range games.
Dragic, though, remained humble and said the victory had to do more with a team dynamic.
“Communication,” Dragic said when asked how Miami managed to overcome a nine-point halftime deficit. “In the first half, our communication was bad, so they got open shots, especially Dirk.
“In the second half, we communicated. Everyone did their job, and this was the result.”
Miami (13-30), which won its second straight game, also got 13 points and eight rebounds from Whiteside, who got off to a great start before having to play through an injury.
Dallas (14-28) had its three-game win streak snapped and fell to 6-17 on the road this season. Nowitzki led the Mavs with 19 points, Matthews had 18 points, and Harrison Barnes added 15. But Barnes scored just two points in the second half.
Whiteside scored Miami’s first seven points before exiting the game after spraining his right ankle while trying to guard Nowitzki. Whiteside returned later in the quarter and helped Miami grab a 29-22 lead heading into the second.
However, Dallas outscored Miami 31-15 in the second quarter to take a 53-44 lead at the half.
Miami closed its deficit to 73-70 after three quarters as Dragic began to take over the game. That trend continued in the fourth as Miami closed out Dallas.
“Dragic got in the paint all night long,” Mavs coach Rick Carlisle said. “We didn’t do a good job containing him.
“They dominated the second half. They were the aggressors. It looked like they came out of the locker room angry.”