Thunder beat Mavs to level up series

 

Roar Guru

By The Crowd, 21 May 2011

Tagged:

 Basketball, James Harden, NBL, Oklahoma City Thunder

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The Oklahoma City Thunder has tied the series 1-1 after beating the Dallas Mavericks 106-100. Kevin Durant had another good night with 24 points, but it was James Harden who starred for the Thunder, knocking down 23 points and grabbing 7 rebounds off the bench.

Dirk Nowitzki continued his recent good form, scoring 29 points, but missed a crucial late game free throw. Tyson Chandler was solid for the Mavs, adding 15 points and 13 rebounds.

Jason Kidd made 2 three point shots early in the game to give Dallas a 10 point lead half way through the first quarter.

Durant threw down a monster dunk on Brendan Haywood and was fouled while in the air. He received a technical for a ‘taunt’, but after the game Durant said, “All I said was, and one.”

At the end of the first Dallas had a 31-26 lead, with Durant scoring 14 first quarter points.

The Thunder took the lead in the second quarter, with Eric Maynor and James Harden scoring 7 points each off the bench. Tyson Chandler also had 7 points in the quarter, but the Mavs trailed at the main break 59-57.

In the third term Dallas didn’t make the most of their opportunities, only shooting 33% from the field, opposed to Oklahoma’s 47%. Trailing by 3 with seconds remaining in the quarter, Harden hit a three and was fouled. He went on to complete the 4 point play and the Thunder went in to the final break with a 1 point lead.

At the end of the quarter Russel Westbrook had an exchange with assistant coach Mark Bryant and was benched for the last quarter.

After the game Kendrick Perkins said, “I think he’s fine.”

Eric Maynor was given the point guard duties for the last quarter and didn’t disappoint, but James Harden was the stand out with 10 final quarter points and 2 three pointers.

The Thunder took over the game and went on a 14-5 run to give them a 10 point lead with just over 3 minutes remaining. Peja Stojakovic missed a three point shot with 9 seconds left which would have cut the lead to 1.

Game 3 is in Oklahoma City on Saturday night.

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