Mavericks rally to beat Heat in Game 4 of NBA Finals

DALLAS -- Hoping to bolster their ailing offense, which averaged just 89.7 points in the first three games of the NBA Finals, the Mavericks made a lineup change for Game 4. They inserted guard J.J. Barea into the starting five in place of DeShawn Stevenson. The move worked. In a way.
The Mavs' offense was still less than impressive overall, but Dallas managed to tie the NBA Finals with an 86-83 win over the Miami Heat.


The Mavericks were able to overcome a rough night for Dirk Nowitzki, who was ill throughout the game and seemed to be exhausted by early in the fourth quarter. But Nowitzki summoned some fourth-quarter strength, scoring 10 of his 21 points in the period, and got help with eight down-the-stretch points from Jason Terry as Dallas went on a critical on a 17-4 run that erased a seven-point Miami lead.
Out of the gate it looked as though the Mavericks would get a shot of energy from the insertion of Barea. Dallas got three straight baskets from Nowitzki in the opening 1:25 to go up 6-0, and though the Mavericks kept up their good shooting—they outshot Miami 50.0 percent to 29.2 percent in the quarter—the Heat controlled the boards (16-10) and finished the first in a 21-21 tie.



Miami stayed on a roll to open the second quarter, anchored by two of the team’s summer free-agent signings—though it was Dwyane Wade (13 points in the half, 32 in the game) and Chris Bosh (16, and 24) carrying the first-half load, with LeBron James (only eight for the game) nearly silent. The Heat opened the quarter with a 7-0 run, but the Mavericks responded with a 9-0 run to regain the lead. Miami went into the half up, 47-45.
In the third, Dallas got something it hadn’t been able to find yet in this series—help from its supporting cast, with coach Rick Carlisle trying to give Nowitzki, 0-for-3 in the quarter and just 6-for-19 on the night, as much rest as possible. Shawn Marion had 10 points in the third to keep Dallas in the game, but Miami got 12 from Wade and closed out the quarter on an 8-1 run to head into the fourth up, 69-65.