Mavericks Find New Life in Game 4 Victory

Photoshop by Payton Wales

DALLAS -- One man had the flu, the other flew the coup Tuesday in Dallas.

For three quarters in Game 4 of the NBA Finals, Dirk Nowitzki looked like something you would see in the movie Dawn of the Dead. Sick from the flu and not sleeping the night before, it looked like the Mavericks' usual hero was laboring and going through the motions.

In the fourth quarter, however, he looked like Lazarus resurrected.

Fighting through a severe sinus infection, Nowitzki found a way to deliver his usual fourth-quarter magic, scoring 10 of his 21 total points in the quarter while also sparking a 21-9 Dallas run to propel the Mavericks to an 86-83 victory and a 2-2 series tie.

"Just battle it out," Nowitzki said about playing through the illness. "This is the Finals. You have to go out there and compete and try your best for your team. So that's what I did."

Nowitzki, whose fourth-quarter heroics in these playoffs have become something of legend, found that legend growing when he hit another game-winning layup with only 14.4 seconds in the game.

The win also found Nowitzki's supporting cast jump into the scrum and help their leader. Tyson Chandler, 13 points and 16 rebounds; Shawn Marion, 16 points; Jason Terry, 17 points; and DeShawn Stevenson, 11 points, were all major contributors in the win, especially the latter, who manged to play lockdown defense on LeBron James.

James, who is considered one of the league's most unstoppable players, was held to only 8 points on 3-of-11 shooting, the lowest point total of his seven-year career. The single-digit scoring performance ended his streak of 433 straight games in double figures.

The poor performance also drew eerie parallels to last year's Conference Finals against the Celtics, where it was widely considered James quit or became disinterested in his team's outcome. James' poor performance could be also be attributed to exhaustion, considering he has averaged 44 minutes per game in these playoffs.

"I've got to do a better job of being more assertive offensively," James said. "I'm confident in my ability. It's just about going out there and knocking them down."

Despite James' poor outing, the Heat still managed to keep the lead for the majority of the game thanks to Dwyane Wade. Wade, who led all scorers with 32 points, kept the Heat competitive all game. But with 30.1 seconds left, Wade missed a crucial free throw that would have tied the game.

Seconds later, Wade fumbled an inbounds pass but managed to knock the ball to Mike Miller for a potential tying 3-pointer with 6.7 seconds left. The shot fell well short and the American Airlines Center erupted in loud cheers upon realizing their team avoided the dreaded 3-1 deficit. No NBA team down 3-1 in a Finals series has come back to win.

In a series that many critics thought the Heat would run away with, the Mavericks have shown a high level of fortitude and fight on the way to a series tie. So far, the margin of victory in all four games is the lowest it's been since 1998.

"This series is a jump ball," Heat coach Erik Spoelstra said. "These guys live for these type of moments. It's about execution and disposition in the fourth quarter, being able to close out. We have a golden opportunity in the next game."

The Heat may have the opportunity June 9, but the Mavericks seem to have the momentum, and their bench, a renewed vigor. The only thing anyone can be sure of is this series will remain just as unpredictable in its last three games as it has been in its first four.