Nets get up off canvas to end Mavs’ streak
Art Garcia | Mavs.com
Posted: Feb. 10, 2008
EAST RUTHERFORD, N.J. – Vince Carter was down for the count. Clocked in the chin by Brandon Bass’ elbow, Carter was left for dead at one end of court while play continued at the other.
The Nets didn’t look much better.
Carter finally got up and by the time he was ready to come back, the Nets began theirs. New Jersey seized control with a 21-4 run to finish out the first half and carried that momentum into the second to stun the Mavericks 101-82 Sunday night at the IZOD Center.
“This is not normally what we do,” Dallas coach Avery Johnson said.
The Mavs (34-16) surrendered an 11-point lead and had their three-game wining streak snapped. Their two-day, back-to-back road trip ends Monday at Philadelphia.
Carter (game-high 29 points) had only four points in 12 minutes before the leaving the game at the 8:23 mark of the second quarter with what at first appeared to be a possible concussion. Humming along behind Dirk Nowitzki and Josh Howard, the Mavs would take a 36-25 less than two minutes later.
New Jersey (22-29) shaved three points off the lead by the time Carter returned. He stayed on the court for the last 5:21 of the first half, as the Nets finished with a fast-breaking flurry that left the home team up 46-40 at the break.
“He’s one of their leaders,” Howard said of Carter. “I’m sure if that had happened to Dirk and he came back, it would have motivated us.”
Johnson quipped of Carter: “I was hoping he’d go back to North Carolina.”
Carter’s 3-pointer capped a 9-0 run to open the third quarter, opening up a 15-point lead. Jason Terry’s baseline jumper nearly three minutes into the half ended the drought, but the Mavs trailed by at least 15 for most of the quarter.
“We just didn’t respond to that run,” Howard said.
Nowitzki was at a loss trying to explain why.
“It’s not really one thing,” Nowitzki said. “It’s a lot of things combined. Obviously, we didn’t shoot the ball well. They packed the paint. You shoot 2 of 18 from [3-point territory] and that’s just not going to get it done.
“In the second quarter we had some trouble when they slipped into a zone. We couldn’t really get good shots against the zone and when we did, we couldn’t make them. You shoot long shots, that’s going to put them in transition. We had some stupid turnovers in the second that got them layups.”
The Mavs resorted to jumpers, usually from beyond the arc, in their attempt to rally. The comeback didn’t take as the shots didn’t fall. Devean George and Terry hit the team’s only 3-pointers.
With the deficit approaching 20 and a game in the next 24 hours, Johnson didn’t concede. Nowitzki (21 points), Howard (16) and Terry (11) were on the floor deep into the fourth quarter.
“We lost our focus,” Nowitzki said.
Despite the Nets being a relative non-factor in the top-heavy Eastern Conference, the trio of Carter, Jason Kidd and Richard Jefferson remains formidable when healthy and motivated. Carter scored 25 in 26 minutes after the exchange with Bass’ elbow. Kidd, who’s openly seeking at trade, scored 13, dished out 14 assists and grabbed six rebounds. Jefferson added 19 points.
The Mavs’ depth took a hit before the game as Jerry Stackhouse (hamstring) didn’t dress and joined Devin Harris (ankle) on the inactive list. Erick Dampier returned after missing one game with a sprained ankle, but didn’t play in the second half. He was available.
Dallas dropped a half-game back of New Orleans in the Southwest Division and to 12-13 on the road, including 5-8 against the East.
“We haven’t played well on the road all season,” Nowitzki said. “It’s not the first we lost to an Eastern Conference team on the road. Hopefully we get Stack back, get Devin back soon, and then go from there.
“We need to be a good defensive team, set the tone defensively, and move the ball on offense and make shots. That’s what this league comes down to.”
