Full-Court Press

Thunder expecting the Mavs' best shot

DALLAS -- Oklahoma City Thunder coach Scott Brooks expects the Dallas Mavericks to hit them with their best shot when the two etams play Game 4 of their best-of-seven series at 6:30 tonight at American Airlines Center.

"They're going to come out and leave everything on the floor,'' Brooks said. "That's what they always do.

"We understand it's not going to be an easy game.''

The Thunder lead the best-of-seven series 3-0 and can close it out and move on to the next round with a victory tonight. But Brooks knows winning tonight won't come easy.

"We defnitely have a respect for ewhat they do and what they've accomplished,'' Brooks said. "We understand that they're not just going to giuve us the game.

"We're confident in what we do, we believe in what we do. Our guys have done a great job of putting us in this position, but we still have to go out and do it again.''

Just because his team has a decisive edge on the Mavs, Brooks isn't about to look ahead to the next series.

"You have to play well to win an NBA game and you have to play very well to win a playoff game on the road,'' Brooks said. "Sometimes when you play well you're not going to win.

"You always have to win four to move on to the next series and they do have championship experienece.'

Mavs guard Jason Terry said the pressure is squarely on the Thunder. Brooks sort of shrugged his shoulders when he heard that.

"It's good to be up 3-0,'' Brtooks said. "We don't worry about what other players say.

"All we worry about is how we play and how we can improve and win the game. It's not about nothing else, but our team executing and playing with a lot of energy and enthusiasm and making the right plays for each other.''

Brooks just hopes his team makes enough of the right plays tonight to send the defending NBA champions home early.

"We know you have to win four (games) to move on to the next series, and the series is not over,'' Brooks said. "Once you think that, that's when a team can come in and win.

"We feel that we've done a good enough job to be in this position, but we defnitely have to play very well tonight.''

-- Dwain Price

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Thunder not thinking sweep

DALLAS -- The Oklahoma City Thunder is not thinking sweep.

They're just trying to win another game against the Dallas Mavericks in this opening round playoff series.

OKC leads the best-of-seven series, 3--0, with Game 4 slated for 6:30 tonight at American Airlines Center. A 4-0 sweep would give the Thunder additionalrest before they take on the winner of the Los Angeles Lakers-Denver Nuggets series, which the Lakers lead 2-1.

"I have not brought (a sweep) up and I have not heard our players talk about it,'' OKC coach Scott Brooks said this morning. "We have a focused group that just really do a great job of playing game to game.

"We want to put ourselves in position to win the gane, but we understand that they're a good team and they're going to come out with a lot of energy.''

The Mavs came out with a lot of energy this past Thursday, but were still ambushed by the Thunder in Game 3, 95-79. For the most part, OKC kept the crowd out of the game -- a strategy they hope to accomplish again tonight.

"This is one of the best buildings in basketball,'' Brooks said. "The crowd is phenomenal from the start.

"We'd love to take (the crowd) out of the game with good play in the first quarter and keep playing well throughout the game.''

-- Dwain Price

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Fisher knows what the Mavs are missing

DALLAS _ In less than a year, Derek Fisher has seen the Dallas Mavericks up close and in person from two different perspectives.

Last year Fisher was playing for the Los Angeles Lakers when the Mavs swept the Lakers in the second round of the playoffs. This year Fisher is playing for an Oklahoma City Thunder squad that leads the Mavs 3-0 in a best-of-seven first-round playoff series that resumes Saturday at 6:30 p.m. at American Airlines Center.

So why were the Mavs able to sweep the Lakers last year in the playoffs but trail the Thunder in this year's playoffs? By Fisher's analysis, the Mavs are sorely missing glue players like Tyson Chandler, JJ Barea, DeShawn Stevenson and Peja Stojakovic.

Fisher said: "It's tough to compare teams on a year-to-year basis, but I think it speaks to how you obviously need your stars to be stars, you need Dirk Nowitzki and Jason Terry and Shawn Marion, guys that have been All-Stars -- Jason Kidd's a Hall of Famer. You need those guys to be who they are and I think by in-large they have been.''

As far as those glue players the Mavs are missing, Fisher said: "There's no way to, I think, overstate the importance of those guys, the importance of guys that are willing to sacrifice shots and playing time and individual success for what's best for the team.

"So when you think about Tyson Chandler, a guy like a DeShawn Stevenson who added toughness and three-point shooting last year, JJ Barea, Peja being a veteran guy that had been on successful teams before, you throw that in the pie, those are key guys to miss.''

-- Dwain Price

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Charles Barkley says Mavericks 'too old and not quick enough'

TNT analyst Charles Barkley had already said earlier in the series that the Dallas Mavericks couldn't beat Oklahoma City four times and gave the Mavericks no chance to win the opening-round series of the NBA playoffs.

On Thursday night's TNT broadcast, via Mel Bracht's report on newsok.com, Charles said the Mavericks weren't quick enough, but he was quick to jump on the Mavs  men.

"Dallas is too old and they're not quick enough,” he said. “The Mavs had a great run, but they just got old quick.”

And after TNT host Ernie Johnson noted the Mavericks were the oldest team in the league, Sir Charles joked, "Good thing they are going to get some rest after their next game."

The Mavericks, down 3-0, are facing the first sweep in a best-of-seven in franchise history.

As a reference to sponsor Sprint and the Thunder's being a slick phone, Barkley said the Mavericks "are more like that landline with a rotary phone.”

Last year, Barkley was an early and consistent booster of the Mavericks' playoff chances, picking them to beat the Lakers and later the Heat. But, he has noted, this year they miss Tyson Chandler and DeShawn Stevenson.

-- Vince Langford

Thunder take commanding 3-0 lead over the Mavs

DALLAS -- Kevin Durant scored 31 points and the Oklahoma City Thunder beat up the Dallas Mavericks, 95-79, Thursday night at American Airlines Center in Game 3 of their first-round playoff series.

With the victory, the Thunder took a commanding 3-0 lead in this best-of-seven series and need just one more win to advance to the Western Confernece semifinals. Meanwhile, the defending champion Mavs are on the brink of elimination.

No team in NBA history has battled back from an 0-3 deficit to win a best-of-seven series. Game 4 is Saturday at the AAC at 6:30 p.m.

The Thunder led from wire-to-wire and, for the most part, were never seriously threaten by the Mavs. OKC led by as much as 26 points (86-60) with 10:10 left in the game. It was just a bad night at the offcie for the Mavs, who shot 34.2 percent from the field.

Besides Durant, the Thunder got 20 points from Russell Westbrook, and 10 each from Serge Ibaka, James Harden and Derek Fisher. Dirk Nowitzki led the Mavs with 17 points, Jason Kidd scored 12 and Jason Terry added 11.

-- Dwain Price

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Mavs bench must do better

DALLAS -- Their bench has outscored the Oklahoma City Thunder bench, 67-51, in the first two games of this first-round playoff series.

"But we can be better,'' Dallas Mavericks forward Vince Carter said. "We have to continue to do the job -- even step the level up once we come in for the starters.

"That's kind of my mentality, and you know that's (Jason Terry's) mentality. So we just have to keep it going.''

The Mavs' bench finished third in the NBA in scoring with 41 points per game. San Antonio was first with 41.9 points and Denver was second at 41.6 points.

-- Dwain Price

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Mavs counting on an assist from their fans

DALLAS -- The Dallas Mavericks have a message of their fans.

Be rowdy, loud and proud -- an old Mavs' slogan -- when the Mavs take the court Thursday at 8:30 p.m. to play the Oklahoma City Thunder.

The Mavs watched with much interest during Games 1 and 2 of their best-of-seven series with Oklahoma City when the Thunder fans at Chesapeake Energy Arena were extremely loud for most of the game. The Mavs want that same noise to consume American Airlines Center during Games 3 and 4 of this series.

"We've got a great crowd,'' coach Rick Carlisle said. "We need them to really bring it.

"We're playing a really good team, we just had two tough games in a building that was really loud and we need them to reciprocate. That's something that can help our energy, and we need them.''

Forward Dirk Nowitzki believes the Mavs' crowd can match the Thunder's crowd -- scream for scream.

"I think we had an amazing run last year and the crowd was as loud as it gets here, so we definitely need some more of that,'' Nowitzki said. "But usually our play has to get them going.

"It's not like they're going to walk in the building and they're already jumping around. We've got to make them excited with our play, and with our hard play like we did in Game 1 and Game 2.''

-- Dwain Price

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Carlisle said Mavs should play from in front

DALLAS -- Rick Carlisle has a full-proof way of keeping his Dallas Mavericks squad away from late-game tight situations.

"The thing that we can do to help ourselves in those (tight fourth-quarter) situations is try to be playing from in front more,'' Carlisle said. "That's something that we've always done well here in the previous four years, and that puts you in a stronger position.

"That's going to be a goal of ours. And hey, we've got to work the process and play possession to possession, and the games are going to be closer and they're going to be tough.''

Game 3 of the Mavs' best-of-seven first-round playoff series with Oklahoma City is Thursday at 8:30 p.m. at American Airlines Center. The Thunder lead the series, 2-0.

-- Dwain Price

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Terry: Treat Game 3 like its Game 7

DALLAS -- As he stopped for a moment while running up the stairs after Wednesday's practice, Jason Terry had only one comment for the assembled media.

"I'll say it one time,'' the Dallas Mavericks guard said. "Game 3 is Game 7. Thank you very much.''

While coach Rick Carlisle didn't exactly disagree with Terry, he knows the Mavs better win Game 3 of this playoff series against Oklahoma City or else the series is all but over. While 14 teams have recovered from an 0-2 deficit to win a best-of-seven series, no one has ever climbed out of an 0-3 hole to win a best-of-seven series.

It's no wonder Carlisle said: "In a playoff series they're all Game 7's. They all count as one win.''

Whether the Mavs want to admit it or not, Game 3 -- played Thursday at 8:30 p.m. -- is a must-win game for Dallas. Especially since, counting the preseason, the Mavs are only 1-7 against Oklahoma City this season.

"It's a game we need to get back in the series,'' forward Vince Carter said. "We don't want to put ourselves in a hole where you have to come back from 3-0 and expect to win them all against a tough team like that.

"Why not come out the next game and look at it that way -- a must-win game for us?''

-- Dwain Price

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Down 2-0 to OKC -- Kidd said no problem

DALLAS -- Despite being down 2-0 in their best-of-seven series to Oklahoma City, Dallas Mavericks point guard Jason Kidd is a very calm and cool customer.

Instead of acting like the Mavs are in a pressure-packed situation going into Game 3 of this series, that's not the case with Kidd.

"There are no concerns here,'' Kidd said. "It's just basketball. Keep it as simple as possible.''

From Kidd's vantage point, Kevin Durant made a basket that hit the rim and hit the backboard before falling into the net with 1.5 seconds left as the Thunder won Game 1, 99-98. And in Game 2, Dirk Nowitzki missed a late wide open three-pointer with the Mavs up one point, and also had a fadeaway jumper from the corner hug every part of the rim before falling harmlessly by the wayside.

Those two misses by Nowitzki helped keep the Mavs on the short end of a 102-99 score in Game 2 of this series.

"The Durant shot hits the left side of the rim and goes in and they win the ballgame,'' Kidd said. "Dirk's shot (from the corner) bounces around twice and didn't go in.

"He makes that shot -- but he didn't and we lost.''

The Mavs know they could easily be up 2-0 in this series instead of down 0-2.

"We gave two good efforts in Oklahoma City and came up short,'' Kidd said. "And now it's our turn to protect home.''

-- Dwain Price

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