No one bothered them or shouted back. The stands had emptied quickly, and the San Antonio Spurs were in the locker room, knowing they’ve got a lot of work to do.
In a giant Game 1 road victory for the Mavericks, who hadn’t won a road playoff game or postseason series since they went to the NBA Finals in 2006, Josh Howard scored 25 points and Dallas stole the home-court edge in 105-97 victory Saturday night.
“To get a win? Yeah, it’s good to get a win here,” Howard said. “I wouldn’t say ‘steal.’”
He’s right. The Mavs earned it.
The sixth-seeded Mavericks, who had lost nine consecutive playoff road games, outscored the Spurs 31-23 after the teams entered the fourth quarter tied. Until then, the rematch of these Texas rivals had every bit the look of the their thrilling 2006 Western Conference semifinal meeting that was one of the best seven-game series in recent history.
It was the Spurs’ first loss in a playoff opener since 2007 against Denver. San Antonio went on to win the next four games, but that was a younger and healthier team than these Spurs.
“We’ve been here before,” Spurs forward Tim Duncan said. “But it’s a big loss at home for us.”
Duncan scored 27 points for the Spurs and Tony Parker 24. Game 2 is Monday night in San Antonio.
Dallas, a weak road team for most of the season, dealt the Spurs just their fourth playoff loss on their home court since 2007. The Mavs were 18-23 on the road this season, but perhaps the more relevant mark for them began March 31: the day Howard returned from a sore ankle that will require surgery this offseason.
Since then, Dallas is 8-2 and 7-1 in the games he’s played. He played just 34 seconds in the fourth quarter against the Spurs, and afterward admitted that the ankle was sore.
“But time to tough that out,” Howard said.
Dallas coach Rick Carlisle said he labored with the decision to sit Howard.
“If we could keep him out it might be better for his ankle, and the smaller lineup was able to finish the game well,” Carlisle said.
It certainly did, thanks to the smallest of that bunch - 6-foot guard Jose Barea. Besides pestering Parker as well as any other Mavs defender - Parker shot 2-of-6 in the fourth - Barea scored seven of his 13 points in the fourth.
Jason Terry scored 12 points for the Mavs, including two 3-pointers. But the NBA’s leading candidate for Sixth Man of the Year took a backseat in the fourth to Barea, whose floating runner with 5:31 left made it 93-83.
San Antonio entered the playoffs facing big doubts about how it’d fare without Manu Ginobili, who’s out for the playoffs with an injured ankle. In the fourth, when the Spurs could’ve used his offense and energy the most, the Spurs shot 40 percent while Dallas shot nearly 58 percent.
Duncan, wearing a sleeve on his achy left knee instead of the bulky contraption he wore at practice Friday, scored five points in the fourth but couldn’t help the Spurs keep pace. Duncan never has lost a first-round playoff series.
“It’s tough,” Terry said of winning in San Antonio. “This is probably the toughest place, besides Cleveland, to play in the league. It’s not going to be anything different on Monday night."
