Post by DiamondThief on Mar 4, 2015 23:10:55 GMT -8
Dallas Mavericks at Portland Trail Blazers
What: The Mavericks make their final trip of the season to Rip City to battle the Blazers.
When: Thursday, March 5 at 7:30 p.m. (PT).
Mavericks Media: Radio - 103.3 ESPN.
Blazers Media: Radio - Rip City Radio 620 AM.
National Media: TV - TNT.
Previous: Nov. 6 - Blazers 108, Mavericks 87. Feb. 7 - Mavericks 111, Blazers 101 (OT).
Schedule: April 15 - Blazers at Mavericks.
Note: This game matches two playoff contenders who could very well meet in the first round.
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The Mavericks are 40-22, 19-12 on the road and 20-15 in conference play. They are coming off a 102-93 home win over the Pelicans on March 2. They are scoring 105.2 (4th in the NBA) and allowing 100.5 (16th). The Mavericks, who are 6-4 in their last 10 games, are third in the Southwest Division and sixth in the Western Conference.
The Blazers are 40-19, 25-6 at home and 22-13 in conference play. They are coming off a 98-93 overtime road win over the Clippers on March 4. They are averaging 102.5 points (8th in the NBA) and allowing 97.4 (6th). The Blazers, who have won eight of their last 11, are first in the Northwest Division and fourth in the Western Conference.
Blazers' LaMarcus Aldridge; Mavericks Dirk Nowitzki
DALLAS MAVERICKS
PROJECTED STARTERS
SF - 24 Richard Jefferson
PF - 41 Dirk Nowitzki
C - 6 Tyson Chandler
SG - 11 Monta Ellis
PG - 9 Rajon Rondo
RESERVES
G - 5 J.J. Barea; 2 Raymond Felton; 20 Devin Harris
F - 7 Al-Farouq Aminu; 8 Dwight Powell; 3 Charlie Villanueva
C - 4 Greg Smith; 1 Amar'e Stoudemire; 55 Bernard James
INJURIES
F - 25 Chandler Parsons (ankle) - out
C - 6 Tyson Chandler (hip) - probable
HEAD COACH
Rick Carlisle
STATISTICAL LEADERS
Points - Monta Ellis 19.4
Rebounds - Tyson Chandler 11.7
Assists - Monta Ellis 4.4
Blocks - James 1.8
Steals - Monta Ellis 1.9
FG - Tyson Chandler 67.7%
FT - Dirk Nowitzki 88.6%
3pt - Chandler Parsons 37.5%
PORTLAND TRAIL BLAZERS
PROJECTED STARTERS
SF - 88 Nicolas Batum
PF - 12 LaMarcus Aldridge
C - 42 Robin Lopez
SG - 2 Wesley Matthews
PG - 0 Damian Lillard
RESERVES
G - 4 Arron Afflalo; 5 Steve Blake; 23 Allen Crabbe; 3 CJ McCollum
F - 33 Alonzo Gee; 1 Dorell Wright
C - 19 Joel Freeland; 35 Chris Kaman; 11 Meyers Leonard
INJURY REPORT
none reported
HEAD COACH
Terry Stotts
STATISTICAL LEADERS
Points - LaMarcus Aldridge 23.3
Rebounds - LaMarcus Aldridge 10.5
Assists - Damian Lillard 6.2
Blocks - Robin Lopez 1.5
Steals - Damian Lillard 1.4
FG - LaMarcus Aldridge 45.4%
FT - LaMarcus Aldridge 87.0%
3pt - Wesley Matthews 39.4%
ANGI'S TAKE
The Blazers could very well be up 2-0 in this series, had they not given up a 16-point fourth-quarter lead in Dallas on Feb. 7. As it turned out, Nowitzki hit three pointer with 20.9 seconds in regulation to send the game into overtime. The Mavericks took over from there, outscoring the Blazers 15-5 in the extra period. Nowitzki paced three Mavericks players who scored 20 or more in that game with 25 points. Parsons scored 20 while adding 9 rebounds and 3 steals, and Ellis scored 20 while dishing out 6 assists. Chandler and Aminu pulled down 13 and 9 rebounds, respectively. Harris poured in 16 points off the bench. The Mavericks feature a talented starting unit and solid bench, augmented by the recent signing of Stoudemire. Lillard led the Blazers in the Feb. 7 matchup with 26 points, 7 rebounds, 7 assists and 4 steals. Aldridge contributed 25 points an 14 rebounds, while Matthews had 17 points, 8 rebounds and 4 steals. Batum hauled in 10 boards, while Lopez nearly had a double-double with 11 points and 8 rebounds. Kaman had 12 points in that game. McCollum is averaging 11.0 points against the Mavericks this season, though is is unlikely to see significant action with the addition of Afflalo. The Blazers are at full strength for the first time in nearly three months. That depth could be a key for them in this game. The Blazers can win this if they hold the Mavericks to under 42 percent shooting and limit their own turnovers. Matchup to watch: Monta Ellis vs. Wesley Matthews.
OFFICIALS
Ron Garretson, Michael Smith, Leon Wood.
QUOTABLE
Mavericks coach Rick Carlisle on the Mavs comeback on Feb. 7: "They hung in there and basically pitched a shutout in the last two minutes to get to overtime and then we got some momentum. That was a hard game, and that's a heavyweight team in the West."
Blazers forward LaMarcus Aldridge on the Feb. 7 loss to the Mavs: "Tonight was tough, to lose like that. We outplayed them for all but two minutes. And those two minutes were the most important two minutes."
FEATURED TWEETS
EXTRA
In between drives to the hoop and game-winning threes, Damian Lillard has been working on earning his bachelors degree in Technical Sales from Weber St. He is set to collect the degree after satisfying the necessary requirements. Mike Richman of OregonLive has the story here.
"This degree and Weber State mean so much to me. I don't have any plans to continue further right now, due to my career, but I am honored to have a diploma from WSU to take with me where ever I go. It is one of the greatest accomplishments of my life," Lillard told the Weber St. student newspaper, The Signpost.
MATCH UP MEME
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Graphic courtesy of David.
