Full-Court Press

Game 4 issue in the stands

Hey folks,

For the few out there who haven't already gotten enough of the whole Mavericks-Nuggets drama, here's this story and clip from KDFW/Fox 4 that shows Carmelo Anthony's girlfriend being escorted from the stands on Monday night.

Also, Mark Cuban apologized to Kenyon Martin and his mother on his blog, http://blogmaverick.com/, for the post-Game 3 events.

-- Tracey Myers

Thoughts on that last play

There were several thoughts on the Carmelo Anthony anticipated-but-not-called foul/3-pointer at the end of the game.

Antoine Wright was frustrated that there was no whistle ("I was positive a whistle was coming, just like everybody else was positive the whistle was coming and the only reasy it didn't come sooner is because (Anthony) lost the ball. I tried to hit him before he got into the shooting motion, I felt like I did, and the whistle wasn't blowing."

Jason Kidd: "The game didn't come down to that last play. We tried to take a foul, we didn't get that. You have to make plays down the stretch and we didn't get that." When asked if this game was taken away from the Mavs: "No. We lost. There's nothing taken. You either win or lose and you learn from the experience and move on."

Dirk Nowitzki: "I thought (Wright) wrapped up (Anthony) pretty good. But if there's no call, you have to play through it." On if the team let up anticipating a call. "Yeah, you can never stop playing. You have to play to the whistle. Early in the game they would've called that a foul. Felt like there were 100 free throws out there. But there was no whistle."

Thoughts, folks?

-- Tracey Myers

Wow

Well, that was stunning, and not in a good way for the Mavs. I'm sure they wanted that foul call at the end on the floor. Considering what was called today, that certainly was more than worthy of a whistle. Should've been called.

But once again, how many free throws missed in the fourth? This was a bitter pill to swallow, and it looked like everybody was hot-tempered there at the end.

-- Tracey Myers

Well, at least it'll be close

Which is something we haven't been able to say the past two games. I haven't kept track of the free throws the Mavs have missed here in the fourth quarter.

-- Tracey Myers

Birdman goes bye-bye

Chris Andersen is the first to foul out... I'm guessing he won't be the last. ESPN keeps showing the graphic of those Mavs and Nuggets in foul trouble. It's a long list. Should just find a way to keep the running tally in the corner of the screen.

-- Tracey Myers

Looking ahead to the fourth...

We know we'll get there (at some point), so I'll ask now... what Mavs team is going to show up in the fourth?

Better yet, can they keep the Nuggets from repeating those fourth-quarter displays from Games 1 and 2?

-- Tracey Myers

Whistles in my head

I wish they were just in my head, actually. Is it just me, or is this one whistle-happy game today? I know the refs are probably trying to keep things under control, but sheesh!

-- Tracey Myers

One down...

Well, what do we think so far, kids?

Mavs had a 17-12 lead at the 2:26 mark, but the Nuggets got rid of that in a hurry. Anthony's shot with .2 seconds remaining in the quarter tied it at 20-20. Perfect for vision, but methinks the Mavs would've liked a little space between them and the Nuggets.

And so we carry on...

-- Tracey Myers

Spirited? Yes. Clean? Um...

Maybe it's just me, but this hasn't been the most pristine quarter of basketball. Bit of sloppiness, plenty of missed shots... everyone must have gotten used to the late starts.

-- Tracey Myers

Pregame thought on Dirk

I was just chatting with a few media folk, and I had this discussion with a friend yesterday regarding Dirk Nowitzki. We're all curious to see how he reacts, right?

Well, this whole situation didn't just happen on Wednesday afternoon/evening. It's probably been ongoing for the guy. Yet when he hits the court, his mind is completely focused on the court, the game, the task at hand. He had 35 points on Tuesday in Denver. You think the whole thing back here wasn't on his mind on Tuesday? But he shakes that stuff off when it's game time.

So is there anyone who doubts his focus for Game 3?

-- Tracey Myers