In January, missed free throws, poor clock management and good shooting by the Mavericks added up to a 115-106 loss in overtime. We know they're a good team, but we really outplayed them out in Dallas. We outplayed them tonight. Dirk Nowitzki's 22 points and 14 rebounds led the Mavericks, who had their three-game winning streak against Orlando snapped. Juwan Howard had 17 points and eight rebounds and Michael Finley added 14 points.
Small things lift the team.
We were able to get the lead and it just sparked. Orlando coach Doc Rivers said he decided to play Alexander after having a a gut feeling on the flight home from Sunday's loss at Detroit. I was a rookie and Doc was the old fogey on the team. He's carried me all the way through, and it was a blessing for me to end up here and play for him. The Mavericks missed eight of nine shots and four consecutive free throws during Orlando's run.