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Mavericks return to scene of last season's playoff failure

Nov 8, 2007 - 2:11 PM Dallas (3-1) at Golden State (0-4) 10:30 pm EST

OAKLAND, California (Ticker) - The Dallas Mavericks return to the scene of a bitter disappointment Thursday when they face the Golden State Warriors.

After cruising to a 67-15 record during the regular season, Dallas was expected to dispose of Golden State in the first round of the Western Conference playoffs last season.

However, the Warriors proved that winning three games from the Mavericks during the regular season was no fluke. Golden State became the first eighth seed to beat a top seed in the best-of-seven format by stunning Dallas in six games.

Dallas has shown little hangover from its early playoff dismissal, winning three of its first four games. including a 107-98 triumph over the Houston Rockets on Monday.

Mavs point guard Jason Terry, who is coming off the bench after being a starter for most of his career, is averaging 22.8 points.

Meanwhile, Golden State has yet to win a meaningful game since last postseason. The Warriors dropped their fourth consecutive game on Tuesday, a 108-104 setback against the Cleveland Cavaliers.

While their up-tempo offense has stayed about the same (106.0 points per game), the Warriors are giving up 12 points per game more this season (119.0) than in 2006-07 (107.0).