Inside Report: No. 3 Mavericks (2-1) at No. 4 Thunder (1-2) — Game 4 preview

Earl K. Sneed previews Game 4 of the Western Conference Finals, as the Dallas Mavericks try to repeat the events of a Game 3 road win on the Oklahoma City Thunder's home floor, looking again to rely on a solid defensive effort.

OKLAHOMA CITY — Either the Dallas Mavericks will take a commanding 3-1 series lead on Monday night in the Western Conference Finals, or the Oklahoma City Thunder will avenge a Game 3 loss at home.

Either way, there figures to be an added sense of desperation for both teams as they take the court at the Oklahoma City Arena, looking to make the proper adjustments following the Mavericks’ 93-87 road victory Saturday night to regain the home-court advantage.

Despite a combined 10-of-33 shooting for forward Dirk Nowitzki and sixth man Jason Terry, the Mavericks managed to snatch away a victory on the Thunder’s home floor thanks in large part to a suffocating defense and the play of versatile forward Shawn Marion and point guard Jason Kidd.

While Kidd manned the controls, scoring 13 points and dishing out eight assists on the night, Marion slashed and dashed through the lane to score his 18 points on 9-for-13 from the floor to match Nowitzki for team-high scoring honors. Meanwhile, the four-time All-Star, Marion, took on the challenge of defending back-to-back scoring champion Kevin Durant head on, holding the 6-foot-10 forward to just 7-for-22 at the other end to tally up his 24 points.

“JET [Terry] and myself were off, so I guess we’ll take the win, if our top two shooters and top guns are off like that and we still won the game. That’s a tribute to our defense,” Nowitzki said. “Great defensive effort, I think. … ‘Trix [Marion] really took the challenge.”

“We came out and did what we needed to do,” Marion explained. “We started being really aggressive on both ends of the floor. We took them on in anything and everything we wanted to do on both ends of the floor. … We wanted to make sure that they felt our presence out there. We came out and were aggressive on both ends of the floor and that’s it.”

But the 38-year-old Kidd is quick to admit that the Mavericks will need both Nowitzki and Terry to step up in order to combat a vengeful Durant and an attacking Russell Westbrook, who scored a game-high 30 points despite matching Nowitzki with seven turnovers.

“Guys stepped up. Everybody is gonna look at Dirk and everybody expects superhuman things every time he’s on the floor, but he’s human. He and JET had a bad night, but we kept playing as a team and, again, we’ve always won and lost as a team. Hopefully those two guys will have a better outing come Monday,” Kidd said.

He added: “Westbrook had 30 and Durant had 24, so I don’t know how good of a defensive scheme we had, but the big thing is team defense. We’ve gotta make it tough.”

The Mavericks certainly made it tough for the Thunder’s high-octane offense in Game 3, jumping out to a 23-point lead in the first half and holding on late while outshooting the home team, 43.9 percent to 36.5 percent, to keep Oklahoma City under 100 points for the first time in the series. And after also stealing both regular-season contests in the Thunder’s backyard, the Mavericks will try to take a fourth game north of the Texas border to return to Dallas with a three-games-to-one edge and a chance to close out the series back at home on Wednesday night.

But after being held to a series-low 18 points on just 7-of-21 from the floor and 1-for-6 from 3-point range, Nowitzki confesses that he and his teammates will have to play even better to replicate the victory from two nights prior. Mavericks coach Rick Carlisle shares that sentiment, adding that it will take a total team effort once again in order for the Dallas squad to take both games in the Thunder’s home gym.

“We’ve gotta be even sharper in Game 4,” Nowitzki simply said. “We’ve just got to come out with the same intensity and focus on the defensive end, and I think that’s gonna help us in Game 4.”

“Our team has to outperform their team,” Carlisle added. “They’ve got some guys that are very dynamic individual talents. Our team is built a little differently. We’re a group that’s a little dependent on one another more than a lot of the teams left playing, so it’s one of the things I love about our team. Our collective spirit that we play with and our collective will have got to rise up right now, and that’s where it’s at.”

Note: The Mavericks look to take two games in Oklahoma City when they face the Thunder in Game 4 of the Western Conference Finals on Monday night, with every game in the series coming every other day and tipping off at 8 p.m. CT, airing nationally on ESPN.

Watch parties for all Mavs away games will continue at the American Airlines Center. Watch parties will be inside the arena, and fans are encouraged to wear blue to support the Mavericks.

Join the Mavs Dancers, ManiAACs, Street Team, and Ro Parrish to watch the game inside the American Airlines Center. Fans will have the opportunity to purchase Mav Gear and other Mavs playoff apparel.

Parking is available in the Platinum Parking garage for $5. Food and beverages will be available for purchase (no outside food or beverages allowed).

The Mavericks will host Game 5 at the American Airlines Center on Wednesday night, with the game tipping off at 8 p.m. CT and airing nationally on ESPN. Great seats are still available and tickets can be purchased by visiting the American Airlines Center box office, logging on to Mavs.com or by calling 214-747-MAVS (6287).

All remaining the Mavs’ home playoff games at American Airlines Center will be a MAVS ROYAL BLUE-OUT!

Every seat at the American Airlines Center will have a MAVS ROYAL BLUE playoff T-shirt placed in it. We need for you and every Mavs fan to show their Mavs pride. So, dress ready to put on your MAVS ROYAL BLUE playoff T-shirt when you get to your seat.