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When you read the box score of a game after the first quarter you have a team with 42 points and the opposing team with 36 that tells you what kind of game it’s going to be from the get go.
The same can be described for James Harden who came out on fire with 12 first quarter points to get Houston off to the right start offensively.
The Mavericks who seem to unravel as each game goes on with chemistry issues and drama brought on by the Rondo situation tried to prove the doubters wrong. Dirk Nowitzki and Monta Ellis tried to keep up with The Rockets offense, but Houston shooting 52% from beyond the arc is what killed The Mavericks in this game.
Dirk and Ellis combined for 24 of The Dallas Mavericks 29 points in the fourth quarter, and Ellis who had a playoff career high 34 points potentially could’ve had another opportunity after a missed call which even upset Dallas Mavericks Owner Mark Cuban that forced him to leave the court early which is a very rare occasion.
The Rockets James Harden played the hero role tonight, and it paid off for Houston with a victory. Harden shot 5/7 from downtown and also filled the stat sheet as usual.
The Rockets also owe center Dwight Howard a big thank you after a dominating performance on the boards with 26 rebounds a playoff career high.
Both teams shot over 50% from the field and Houston had 60 points in the paint in tonights victory. Dallas just needed a few possessions of good defense even though some calls towards the end did go in Houston’s favor in playoff basketball there’s no excuses.
The Mavericks will fight to keep this series alive on Sunday night against Houston, but no team has comeback from a 3-0 deficit.
Dallas has been eliminated from the first round for the past four years since winning the NBA finals.
