Thunder Lets Late Lead Slip Away Against Mavericks

OKC led by seven in the fourth quarter, but Dallas responded with a huge run to put the game out of reach.

Thursday, May 26th 2011, 12:03 pm

By: News On 6

Thunder Lets Late Lead Slip Away Against Mavericks

Originally Published: Nov 24, 2010 9:39 PM CDT

Corey DeMoss
Oklahoma Sports Staff Writer

OKLAHOMA CITY – The Oklahoma City Thunder surrendered a fourth-quarter lead thanks to a flurry of 3-pointers in a 111-103 loss to the Dallas Mavericks Wednesday.

The Thunder (10-5) led for much of the night and held a 90-83 lead with seven minutes left in the game. Then the Mavericks (10-4) caught fire from the field.

Dirk Nowitzki made 3-pointers on two consecutive possessions and turned the second into a four-point play to tie the game at 90. Teammate Jason Terry followed with a 3-pointer of his own on Dallas’ next possession to take the lead.

Those 3-pointers sparked a huge 24-3 run by the Mavericks for a 107-93 lead, their biggest advantage of the game. The Dallas defense also became more aggressive and forced Oklahoma City into bad shots and forced attempts from long distance.

The Thunder went more than four minutes without a point during that stretch, giving Dallas all of the momentum. Oklahoma City never recovered.

The Thunder led by as much as 11 points in the second half, but could not overcome Dallas’ dominance of the boards. The Mavericks out-rebounded the Thunder 49-36 for the game, and pulled down several late offensive rebounds that allowed them milk the clock and seal the win.

The Mavericks also gave OKC a taste of its own medicine, making 30 of 34 free throws. Nowitzki went 14-of-15 from the charity stripe by himself and finished with a game-high 34 points, 17 of which came in the fourth quarter. Dallas as a team outscored the Thunder 36-22 in the final frame.

Kevin Durant led the Thunder with 32 points and tied a season high with 11 rebounds. However, he was the only Thunder player who pulled down more than four rebounds. Jeff Green scored 17 points, Russell Westbrook scored 13 and Serge Ibaka added 12 off the bench.

Wednesday’s contest ended a five-game winning streak for Oklahoma City, two of which came without Durant or Green. The Thunder will hit the road for its next two games, starting at 7 p.m. Friday against the Indiana Pacers.