MyDallasMavs: First Round- Mavs vs Portland: Game 4

The Mavericks stepped foot onto the court of the Rose Garden hoping to get their first win there this year. With an 18+ point lead going into the fourth quarter, the Mavs were unable to accomplish this goal after Roy blew up in the fourth with 18 points to lead the Blazers to a 84-82 come-back victory.

Both teams started the first quarter off slow but the Mavs eventually fastened up the pace to have a 5-0 edge. DeShawn Stevenson hit 2 consecutive 3-pointers to keep the Mavs up, but the Blazers weren't too far behind with the help of Andre Miller and Wesley Matthews. Jason Kidd soon left for the bench after receiving two early fouls. The Mavs 16-11 at the end of the first, outshooting the Blazers, 31.6% to 25%. Dallas was 4 for 7 from 3-point range just in the first quarter.

JJ Barea took over as Kidd was on the bench and teamed up with Jason Terry to increase the Mavs' lead. Each team began fouling each other hard after Dallas took a nine point lead. Kidd then returned to help Dirk and Chandler do what they do best. Chandler and Aldridge soon got caught up in each other's arms which led to a push by Aldridge and a double-technical foul call on both players. After this, the pushing between the teams continued and the Blazers went on a 12-4 run to come two short of the Mavs' 37-35 lead at the half.

The Mavericks didn't take a trip to the free throw line the entire first half; this was the first time they haven't attempted a free throw during a playoff half since the 02-03 postseason.

Both teams ran into some more early foul trouble as Kidd received his fourth foul while Marcus Camby began to experience the same problem. Despite Kidd's fouls, The Mavericks held onto the lead with Shawn Marion's key offense and Kidd's 3-pointer to push Dallas' lead to double digits. It was then Chandler who received another personal foul, pushing his total to three. But despite all the foul trouble, Dallas once again continued to control the game and gain a lead as large as 23. Dallas' pumped up their defense, forcing 15 straight misses from Portland to give the Mavs a 67-49 lead at the end of the third.

But little did the Mavs know, the whole game would turnaround from here.

In the fourth quarter, the Mavs' offense began to slide downhill as Roy and Aldridge did what they could to get their team within single digits. Roy went on fire in the fourth, determined to make a come-back. With less than 3 minutes to go, a series of shots from Roy cut Portland's deficit to just 80-74. A shot by Nowitzki was called off due to an offensive foul, followed by a shot by Aldridge, a Dallas turnover and a score by Roy to put Portland within two. But Roy wasn't finished; he sunk in a 3-pointer and was fouled by Marion for the four-point play, tying the game at 82 with a minute left. An out of bounds call was originally awarded to the Mavs but after the review, the call was changed to Blazers ball with 49 seconds to go. And again, Roy drained in another shot, giving Portland a 2 point lead. Kidd missed a 3-pointer, and Roy missed on the other end as Kidd got the rebound and threw a long pass to Terry down the court who missed a 3-pointer at the buzzer.

The Blazers won is 84-82 and tied the series at 2-2.

Dirk led the Mavs with 20 points while Terry had 13 points and Marion added 12.

Roy led the Blazers with 24 points. Aldridge had 18, Miller had 14, Matthews had 11, and Wallace added 10.

After this devastating loss, the Mavs will travel back to Dallas for game 5 Monday night in the AAC.