Mavs survive Heat
Jerry Stackhouse regained his scoring touch at the right time for the Dallas Mavericks, helping them finally stave off a comeback attempt by the Miami Heat.
Stackhouse – slowly working his way back after spraining his left ankle last month – scored 16 of his 23 points in the final quarter as the Mavericks held on to beat Miami 99-93 on Sunday at Miami in the first matchup between the teams since last season’s NBA Finals.
Josh Howard had 25 points and Dirk Nowitzki added 22 points and 11 rebounds for Dallas, which improved its NBA-best record to 34-8 and is 20-1 in its last 21 games. Plus, the Mavs got some tiny measure of revenge over the Heat, who lost the first two games of last year’s finals before rallying to win the championship in six games.
“We just had to keep grinding,” Stackhouse said. “It was a great game which had some great players making great plays.”
Dwyane Wade – who suffered a left ankle injury in the first quarter, but returned and played 44 minutes – finished with 31 points, six rebounds and six assists for Miami, but missed a potential tying 3-pointer with 5.8 seconds left.
Jason Williams had 17 points and Udonis Haslem, who missed his first eight shots, had 15 for the Heat.
“We still had an opportunity to win the game,” Heat center Alonzo Mourning said. “When you put yourself in a position to win, you don’t want to just settle for that. They don’t keep stats for moral victories.”
The Heat were down by 13 early in the second half and their chances clearly didn’t look good, especially with Shaquille O’Neal inactive for the 34th straight game because of his surgically repaired knee and Wade hobbling around after injuring his ankle by stepping on Nowitzki’s foot late in the first quarter.
“A stupid play,” Wade said.
But he returned after getting re-taped and somehow, Miami pulled into a 90-all tie with 3 1/2 minutes left.
“We gave up a big lead, they tied it up but we didn’t give up either,” Mavs coach Avery Johnson said. “They didn’t give up. We didn’t give up. That’s what I think championship teams and championship organizations are all about.”
Spurs 99, 76ers 85: At Philadelphia, Tim Duncan had 17 points and 15 rebounds, and Brent Barry scored 23 points to lead San Antonio to a win over the 76ers.
Suns 131, Timberwolves 102: At Phoenix, Shawn Marion had 17 points and 20 rebounds, then sat out the fourth quarter as the Suns won their 13th in a row with a rout of Minnesota.
Trail Blazers 99, Bucks 95: At Portland, rookie Brandon Roy had a career-high 28 points including a late jumper that helped preserve the Trail Blazers’ victory over short-handed Milwaukee.
Off the court
Heat rookie Robert Hite was charged with driving under the influence early Sunday in Miami Beach, Fla., and missed Miami’s game against Dallas. … Atlanta forward Josh Smith made obscene gestures to the crowd as he left for the locker room following his second-quarter ejection Saturday night in the Hawks’ game at Charlotte. Smith raised both middle fingers to the crowd as he was about halfway through the tunnel, apparently reacting to being heckled by fans. … Kevin Garnett was suspended one game by the NBA on Sunday for throwing a punch at Detroit’s Antonio McDyess on Friday night. … New Jersey Nets forward Richard Jefferson will undergo arthroscopic surgery on his right ankle today.