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 'We just showed up' Dallas upset keeps Houston from clinching playoff spot
Posted: Thursday April 22, 1999 12:22 AM
HOUSTON (AP) -- Playoff contenders are quickly learning in the final days of the regular season not to overlook the Dallas Mavericks. The Houston Rockets are the latest to get the painful message. Michael Finley had 27 points and 11 assists as the Mavericks surprised their fourth playoff contender in six games with a 109-95 victory Wednesday night. "This is the best we've played for 48 minutes," Finley said. "Fortunately, for me, my shot was falling and when I passed to my teammates, they hit their shots too. Defensively, we did what we needed to do and offensively our shots were falling." The victory kept the Rockets from clinching a playoff spot and snapped an 11-game Mavericks' losing streak to the Rockets. Dallas hadn't beaten the Rockets since March 27, 1996 in Reunion Arena, and the Mavs' last victory in Houston was April 11, 1995. "We knew we were going to take our lumps early [in the season], and we did," Finley said. "But now, we're in a groove. The guys know their roles and we're in a comfort zone. We've been playing so freely and loose, we have looked good." It was just the third road victory of the season for Dallas, which led by as many as 26. The Mavericks already had victories over likely playoff teams San Antonio, Minnesota and Phoenix, and it didn't take long for them to take control against the Rockets. Gary Trent had 24 points and 10 rebounds and rookie Dirk Nowitzki added 22 points for his fifth double-figure performance in the last six games. The Mavericks shot 53 percent from the field to 43 percent for the Rockets.
The Mavericks, coming off a thrilling 104-100 comeback victory over the Phoenix Suns on Tuesday night, had an 11-0 run after falling behind 22-18 with 4:06 to go in the first quarter. Trent had 14 points and Finley had 10 points in the big first quarter. "They played well," Charles Barkley said. "Give them credit. Michael Finley was terrific and Trent was terrific and Nowitzki was terrific. Everytime we lose, you guys think the world is coming to an end. "If those three guys play like that every night they are going to win a lot of games. They don't play that well every night." Dallas led 61-49 at the half and it only got worse for the Rockets in the third quarter when Finley scored 13 of his points. "The last two games, we got wins that were unexpected," Dallas coach Don Nelson said. "I thought if we could hang in there, we might be able to win with a last shot, but to play with the lead the entire game is surprising." Hakeem Olajuwon led the Rockets with 27 points and 11 rebounds. Barkley had 16 points and 14 rebounds. Rockets coach Rudy Tomjanovich was almost speechless. "I can't figure it out, no way with everything so obvious, to get that kind of performance is baffling," Tomjanovich said. "They made some good shots, they made some easy shots. We just showed up." Notes: The Rockets activated guard Brent Price before the game and placed forward Othella Harrington on the injury list. Price had been on the injured list since April 8 following following arthroscopic surgery on his right knee. Harrington was placed on the list after surgery on his left foot. ... Barkley moved past Robert Parish for the No. 13 spot on the NBA's all-time scoring list with 23,349 points. ... Trent was questionable for the game with a bruised right hamstring. ... Finley kept his hot hand. He had a season high 36 points against Phoenix.
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