Final
Harris spoils McGrady's return as Mavs edge Rockets
Nov 22, 2007 - 5:08 AM By Gene Duffey PA SportsTicker Contributing WriterHOUSTON (Ticker) - They call Devin Harris "The Blur" for a reason.
One of the fastest players in the league, Harris scored 10 of his 22 points in the fourth quarter as the Dallas Mavericks rallied for a 100-94 victory over the Houston Rockets on Wednesday night.
Josh Howard poured in 20 points and Dirk Nowitzki had 18 and 14 rebounds for Dallas, which extended its winning streak to five games.
The win also spoiled the return of Houston's Tracy McGrady, who was sidelined for two games after hyperextending his right elbow against the Los Angeles Lakers last Wednesday. He registered 15 points, 12 assists and seven boards.
"Throughout the game, I lost feeling in two of my fingers," McGrady said. "That was bothering me all night, but I still played."
In the fourth, Houston pushed its lead to 91-86 on Yao Ming's free throw after Harris' flagrant foul on the 7-6 All-Star center with 1:39 remaining.
But the speedy Harris then took over, feeding Jerry Stackhouse for a 3-pointer from the right corner and converting a critical three-point play by blowing past Yao as Dallas grabbed its first lead of the game at 92-91 with 34 seconds left.
"That was the play, to go at Yao," Harris said. "Isolate him and attack him. Obviously, I think I can beat him to the basket."
"He's unbelievable, the way he sets the tone for us," Stackhouse said of Harris. "When we get down, sometimes we just get out of the way and let him take guys to the basket."
Houston was never able to regain the lead as Stackhouse nailed key free throws in the waning seconds.
It was the second impressive come-from-behind win for the Mavericks, who erased a 24-point deficit to beat Toronto at home on Tuesday.
"Obviously, we're a veteran team and we don't get discouraged easily," Harris said.
"You don't really want to put yourself in that position all the time," Nowitzki said. "It puts a lot of pressure on you. The fourth quarter we kept on fighting. Our defense was good."
Harris' coast-to-coast layup with 6:48 remaining in the fourth helped cap an impressive 18-7 run as Dallas sliced the deficit to 83-80. Harris and reserve Brandon Bass combined for 14 of those points.
"This team is tough mentally," Dallas coach Avery Johnson said. "I love back-to-back games. It shows how tough you are. If we hadn't won this game, I would been proud of the team for coming back."
Yao collected 30 points and 15 rebounds to lead the way for the Rockets, who dropped a 107-98 decision to the Mavs earlier this month on the road.
"We made mistakes again," Yao said. "They had a small lineup and we didn't play enough good basketball to win the game. In the last minute and 40 seconds we turned the ball over."
Stackhouse was called for a technical foul with 6:18 left in the third quarter that Yao converted into a free throw. Yao then hit a 12-footer and McGrady added a jumper from out front for a 65-51 bulge.
- NBA
DALLAS 100
HOUSTON 94 FINAL
Nov 21 10:01 PM - NBA
DALLAS 62
HOUSTON 74 END, 3RD QTR
Nov 21 9:19 PM - NBA
DALLAS 47
HOUSTON 46 HALFTIME
Nov 21 8:34 PM - NBA
DALLAS 25
HOUSTON 30 END, 1ST QTR
Nov 21 8:02 PM - chairmanlau so mcGrady hurt is shooting arm. what? mcGrady can't play left-handed? My little cousin, tiffany, can play left-handed!
of course, she IS left handed. and she doesn't have to shoot over dirk. she's also imaginary.
but still, my point is that mcGrady is a sissy.
Mavericks vs. RocketsNov 20 1:41 PM
Related News
- Knicks Robbed By Late Call on Jalen Brunson Feb 13
- Houston Rockets vs. Indiana Pacers game preview Dec 26
- Stats rundown: 3 stats to know from the Dallas Mavericks’ Christmas Day win over the Phoenix Suns, 128-114 Dec 26
- 3 thoughts on a tense 128-114 Christmas win for the Mavericks over the Phoenix Suns Dec 26
- Luka Hits 10,000 Points: How Doncic reached a career Milestone Dec 25
- Mavericks vs Suns Preview: the NBA Christmas Day nightcap of Dallas against Phoenix Dec 25
- Mavericks Odds: How to bet the Dallas Mavericks at Phoenix Suns Dec 25
- Mavericks vs Suns Preview: 3 things to know as Mavericks get Christmas Day showdown against the Suns Dec 24
- NBA Power Rankings Watch: the Mavericks navigate the injury bug Dec 24
- Bask in Dante Exum’s glow up from NBA exile to Dallas Mavericks starter Dec 24
- AJ Lawson scores career-high 17 points against the Spurs Dec 24
- Quote board: Doncic, Mavs roll over Wemby-less Spurs Dec 24