Dirk Nowitzki scored 21 points and had 10
rebounds, and the Mavericks used a suffocating defense in the second half to
beat the Los Angeles Lakers, 94-80, at the Staples Center.
Mavs newcomer Shawn Marion recorded 18 points and six rebounds. Jason Terry
added 16 points off the bench for Dallas, but its defense was the story in the
final 24 minutes.
"We played well together, we competed," said Nowitzki. "The energy was great.
We were all fighting for each other."
The defending NBA-champion Lakers shot 13-of-36 from the field in the second
half, including a 2-for-10 effort for Finals MVP Kobe Bryant. He finished with
20 points, but was just 6-of-19 from the field.
"It's one of the longest nights we've had in this building," said Lakers coach
Phil Jackson. "We should refund the money to our fans. Every time we got
momentum we shot ourselves in our own foot."
Andrew Bynum tallied 14 points and 10 rebounds for the Lakers, who opened
their season with a 99-92 triumph over the Clippers on Tuesday.
Conversely, Dallas lost at home to Washington, 102-91, in its season opener
Tuesday. The Mavs though came out with a good defensive mentality and led by
as many as 22 points, leading by double digits nearly the entire second half
to snap a six-game series skid against the Lakers.
Dallas was able to convert on 15-of-18 foul shots in the first half, helping
the Mavs grab a 52-45 lead at the break.
The Mavs started the third with six consecutive points, capped by a Nowitzki
20-foot jumper. A layup from Jose Juan Barea ballooned the margin to 78-56
later in the third, and the Lakers, even with newcomer Ron Artest, didn't have
an answer.
In fact, Artest was limited to just three points on the night, going 1-of-6
from the field. he also was whistled for a technical foul just over two
minutes into the third quarter after picking up an offensive foul.
Dallas was ahead 78-60 moving to the fourth, but LA got within 12 on a pair of
Bryant free throws with 7:47 left. The Mavs came right back with six straight
points, highlighted by Marion's alley-oop jam off a feed from Jason Kidd, for
an 86-68 difference at the midway point.
"It's only game two, but it's a big win character-wise," said Kidd. "It helps
to know we can play with the best. In the third quarter, we put pressure on
them. We were patient on the offensive side."
The Lakers, who never led by more than two points, didn't threaten the rest of
the game.
Jordan Farmar's three-pointer in the waning seconds of the first had the
Lakers looking at a 24-21 deficit after 12 minutes.
LA had the game tied twice in the second, the last time at 37 on a Bynum jam
with 5 1/2 minutes remaining. Bryant was hit with a technical late in the
second as Dallas quickly built its lead to 50-41.
Game Notes
Kidd had one steal and needs seven more to take sixth place all-time from
Clyde Drexler (2,207)...Barea had 12 points...Shannon Brown scored 12 and
Lamar Odom ended with 10 points, six boards and seven assists for the
Lakers...Dallas finished 25-of-32 at the foul line, compared to 9-of-14 for
Los Angeles.
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