MyDallasMavs: Dirk Misses at the Buzzer and Portland Pulls away with the 104-101 Win Over the Mavs

The Mavericks faced the Portland Trailblazers twice in Dallas earlier in the season, neither which were easy wins; the Mavs didn't expect this game to be any different, especially with the addition of Gerald Wallace and the return of Brandon Roy; and it wasn't, as the Mavs fell 104-101.

Peja sat out once again while Marion started in his place.

The Mavs started with an early lead, thakns to Roddy and Dirk with their great perimeter shooting. Dallas took as much as an 8-point lead, hitting their first 11 shots, but the Blazers came back to cut Dallas' lead to just 32-29 at the end of the first quarter, after Rudy Fernandez's shot a jumper at the buzzer. Roddy, Dirk, and Marion all combined to score 28 of the Mavs' 32 points in the first quarter.

Stevenson hasn't had much playing time lately, but he came into the second period showing off his excellent shooting from beyond the arc; this helped secure the Mavs' lead again until Nowitzki left for the locker room after injuring his shoulder after attempting to get a rebound. The Blazers definitely took advantage of this, but Terry helped get the Mavs back in front. Thankfully, Dirk returned to the game and helped put the Mavs up 56-53 at the half.

At the half, even after leaving the game for a little while, Dirk still managed to rack up 12 points. Roddy had 11 points and Marion put in 10. Kidd didn't take a single shot in the first half but had 9 assists and 3 rebounds; it's not unusual for Kidd to have no points but still make a huge impact.

At the half, the Mavs outshot the Blazers 64% to 45%.

The third quarter was welcomed with a nice dunk by Tyson Chandler. Dirk and Roddy continued to keep the Mavs in the game with their on-key shooting. Chandler drew a technical foul and later on got his fourth foul, leaving the game for the bench. At this point the Mavs were up by just 3 points. Brandon Roy hit a jumper at the buzzer to end the forth, helping the Blazers take the 82-80 lead.

In the fourth quarter, the Mavs were trying hard not to let the Blazers pull away. They were down 90-84 with 8:49 left to go. JET hit a much needed jumper and then Dirk hit a shot, making it a 2-point game, 90-88. Chandler received his 5th person foul with just under 6 minutes left to go. The Blazers held on to the lead but the Mavs were trailing right behind them. It continued to be a roller-coaster type of quarter as the Blazers would pull away every time the Mavs came within 2 points. Portland had the100-94 lead with 3:50 to go. JET had yet another clutch shot to put the Mavs within 3 but Dallas made a turnover, clearly at a bad time. After a few plays, Dirk was fouled and hit both his free throws, putting the Mavs down 104-101 with 38.8 seconds left to play. With a big stop, the Mavs had a chance to tie the game with 8.8 seconds left, but unfortunately Dirk missed at the buzzer and they took the 104-101 loss to Portland.

Turnovers became a huge issue for the Dallas as they ended the game with a total of 15. Despite the loss, they managed to outshoot Portland 59.7% to 47.1%.

The Mavs had 5 players score in double figures. Dirk had a double-double with 28 points and 11 rebounds, Marion had 18 points, Roddy had 16, Terry added 14, and Chandler racked up 12. Kidd also wound up with 15 assists.

For the Blazers, Aldridge led the team with 30 points. Roy had 21 points, Matthews added 18, and Fernandez racked up 12.

Next, the Mavs will travel to California to face the Golden State Warriors Wednesday night.