The Margin: On to game 7

by

Visit our Spurs-Mavs Series Hub for all the content posted during the first round. You know what? Just go ahead and bookmark it.

We’re doing The Margin for each of the playoff games during the Spurs-Mavs first round series, and for those readers not familiar with this format, let me get you up to speed. Stolen blatantly from our friend Rob Mahoney, The Margin is a bullet point for each point in the difference in the final score.

  • Basically, with as close as this game has been, the Spurs needed to be close to perfect to get this win. They weren’t. You could’ve lived with a good Dirk game and frankly, most of us were expecting it. But the Monta second half outburst was less than ideal, especially since three of his made baskets late in the fourth quarter came in the paint. On top of that, they got good games from Vince Carter, DeJuan Blair, Jose Calderon and Devin Harris. They were going to have to be able to contain a couple of those guys to get the win.
  • The Mavs put more of an emphasis on stopping the Spurs pick and roll and it didn’t have much of an impact. Actually, it did, it gave Danny Green a little more space. The Spurs offense isn’t the problem. The Mavs shot above 50 percent again and had seven more offensive rebounds than the Spurs. I’m guessing tightening up the defense will be an emphasis from Pop over the next day and a half.
  • Bonus point: Did anyone see this guy sitting court side? He literally looked like he was shining in HD.
  • The Kawhiet Storm

    I can at least take comfort in the fact that if we do beat Dallas Portland is probably going to demolish us, the way our Defense is playing. We need some nasty, and desperately.

  • SpurredOn

    While the defense has been the problem, part of the defensive errors come after bad possessions on offense. In 3 of the reg season wins over Dallas, the games were competitive late yet the Spurs won more by exposing the Mavs’ poor defense than shutting down Mavs shooting.

    Blown leads in game 3 (5 points at 2-min mark due mostly to bad defense) and during the 9-0 Mavs run mid-4Q last night (due mostly to stagnant offense with forced shots) show lapses on both ends. Had either circumstance been played better, the Spurs would’ve been 4-1 or 4-2 series winners. Now, even should they win gm7 versus a lesser opponent, they’ll be dog tired going forward versus an opponent coming off four days rests, These are the blown opportunities that, while they may not cost a series, they cost a championship.