azdad1978
Championship!!!!
Paul Coro
The Arizona Republic
May. 19, 2005 12:00 AM
If you think Dallas' odds of winning this series are bad now that Phoenix has won Game 5, imagine how Suns coach Mike D'Antoni felt when his team trailed at halftime in a series that has seen no team rally from such a predicament.
The Suns pulled out a 114-108 victory Wednesday at America West Arena in the pivotal Game 5, the tiebreaking sort that dictates the winner of best-of-seven NBA playoff series 84 percent of the time. But before the Suns could get back to running off to a 3-2 Western Conference semifinal series lead, there was the ominous sign of a skittish first half that had Phoenix trailing 55-48 and D'Antoni fuming.
His firm halftime words were searching the locker room for some fire and bravado after Steve Nash had to carry his team through a first half that showed more disarray than desperate desire. Phoenix emerged from its tightness with the No. 1 trait D'Antoni sought to continue this series' exchange of punches: attitude.
It wiped out Dallas' halftime lead and survived without Nash on the court at the start of the fourth quarter. After Amaré Stoudemire's dunks and Nash's jumpers scored 20 straight third-quarter points, Phoenix needed a bridge. Jim Jackson stretched out his game to take his team across the river, sparking a 9-0 run when Nash was out, and Dallas never answered.
In a series of predictable momentum shifts, Phoenix ended this one like Dallas ended the last. The Suns were unstoppable. Taking the lead Jackson spotted them and with Nash back, Phoenix scored on its next eight trips down the court.
There was no tweak or scheme that changed things, D'Antoni said, just "the smoke coming out of the coach's office" at halftime.
Phoenix outrebounded Dallas 29-15 in the second half while outscoring the Mavericks in the paint 40-12.
"(That was an) incredible show of heart in the second half," D'Antoni said.
"The theme is the heart, the hustle and the toughness we showed."
Stoudemire's willpower got going in step with the Suns' running game. Stoudemire surfaced for a 21-point, 12-rebound second half that made Game 4's quiet night a simple anomaly. Game 4 was the only contest in these teams' eight meetings this season that Stoudemire did not smack the Mavericks with more than 30 points and more than 10 rebounds.
"In the first half, I came out aggressive and tried to get going but it just took me a little longer," said Stoudemire, who finished with 33 points and 18 rebounds. "In the second half, we came out strong and I came out strong.
"I can't wait for Game 6."
That's Friday in Dallas.
Stoudemire's effort made Dallas pay for its smaller lineups, contributing to Phoenix's 66 points in the paint.
"That number should probably be for three games," Dallas coach Avery Johnson said.
Every Stoudemire point came off a dunk, layup or free throw as the Mavericks' supposed answer for him, center Erick Dampier, offered another low-impact, odd-numbered game.
It was Nash naturally leading the Suns back to their freelance game. With Phoenix running and spreading the floor, Stoudemire could not be schemed and Nash could return to the role of distributor who draws energy from all.
Nash's line of 34 points, 13 rebounds and 12 assists gave him his third career triple-double, two of which have come in this MVP season. Who else could top a 48-point night in the next game?
"We did not follow the game plan and they just shredded us . . . shredded us to pieces," Johnson said.
But a late third-quarter wane gave Dallas one last shot at holding a slim 77-76 lead. Jackson took over, harkening back to his days as a star high school point guard. His aggressive drives resulted in 10 points in the fourth quarter's first six minutes to put Phoenix ahead 94-83.
Suns President and General Manager Bryan Colangelo should have received his Executive of the Year trophy right then for the midseason trade for Jackson that is saving Phoenix while Joe Johnson wears a pinstripe suit.
Jackson, starting for Johnson, went 7 of 8 in the fourth quarter for 15 of his 21 points.
When Jackson came to the sideline in a timeout during the flurry, he looked at Johnson and pointed to his armband that reads "JJ 2."
"I personally want to make sure he can play on so he can enjoy the fruits of his labor," Jackson said.
Key Number
14 - Suns advantage in rebounds (56-42), just the second time in the series they were able to outrebound Dallas. The Mavericks had run up a 95-81 edge in the two games in Dallas.
Turning point
With Steve Nash resting on the bench and the Mavericks leading by one, the Suns ran off nine straight points in the first 2:38 of the fourth quarter and never trailed the rest of the way.
Looking ahead
Phoenix re-established several key elements - most notably rebounding and the pick-and-roll - and kept its composure. Now, the task is to maintain focus when it tries to close out the series Friday at 6 p.m. in Dallas.
Game 5: Quarter by quarter
1st Quarter
Score: Dallas 29-25
Stat: Shawn Marion and Amaré Stoudemire were a combined 3 of 11 from the field.
Synopsis: Phoenix hit its first four three-pointers and was still trailing midway through the quarter. Mavericks sixth man Jerry Stackhouse's hot shooting was good for 11 points.
2nd Quarter
Score: Dallas 55-48
Stat: After two fast-break points in Game 4's first half, the Suns had four Wednesday.
Synopsis: Steve Nash had a 12-point, nine-assist, half, but his teammates shot 38 percent. Stoudemire ended the half with a third foul running out on a three-point try.
3rd Quarter
Score: Dallas 77-76
Stat: After taking a 76-71 lead, Phoenix went 0 for 5 with two turnovers to end the quarter.
Synopsis: Suns took first lead since the opening minutes, but lost it as they failed to capitalize on crowd energy and let Stackhouse add another eight points.
4th Quarter
Score: Phoenix 114-108
Stat: Stoudemire scored 15 fourth-quarter points and grabbed six rebounds.
Synopsis: Jim Jackson sparked a 9-0 run that started the quarter, scoring six points, and hit seven of eight shots overall in the fourth to break open a tight game.
http://www.azcentral.com/sports/suns/articles/0519suns-main0519.html
The Arizona Republic
May. 19, 2005 12:00 AM
If you think Dallas' odds of winning this series are bad now that Phoenix has won Game 5, imagine how Suns coach Mike D'Antoni felt when his team trailed at halftime in a series that has seen no team rally from such a predicament.
The Suns pulled out a 114-108 victory Wednesday at America West Arena in the pivotal Game 5, the tiebreaking sort that dictates the winner of best-of-seven NBA playoff series 84 percent of the time. But before the Suns could get back to running off to a 3-2 Western Conference semifinal series lead, there was the ominous sign of a skittish first half that had Phoenix trailing 55-48 and D'Antoni fuming.
His firm halftime words were searching the locker room for some fire and bravado after Steve Nash had to carry his team through a first half that showed more disarray than desperate desire. Phoenix emerged from its tightness with the No. 1 trait D'Antoni sought to continue this series' exchange of punches: attitude.
It wiped out Dallas' halftime lead and survived without Nash on the court at the start of the fourth quarter. After Amaré Stoudemire's dunks and Nash's jumpers scored 20 straight third-quarter points, Phoenix needed a bridge. Jim Jackson stretched out his game to take his team across the river, sparking a 9-0 run when Nash was out, and Dallas never answered.
In a series of predictable momentum shifts, Phoenix ended this one like Dallas ended the last. The Suns were unstoppable. Taking the lead Jackson spotted them and with Nash back, Phoenix scored on its next eight trips down the court.
There was no tweak or scheme that changed things, D'Antoni said, just "the smoke coming out of the coach's office" at halftime.
Phoenix outrebounded Dallas 29-15 in the second half while outscoring the Mavericks in the paint 40-12.
"(That was an) incredible show of heart in the second half," D'Antoni said.
"The theme is the heart, the hustle and the toughness we showed."
Stoudemire's willpower got going in step with the Suns' running game. Stoudemire surfaced for a 21-point, 12-rebound second half that made Game 4's quiet night a simple anomaly. Game 4 was the only contest in these teams' eight meetings this season that Stoudemire did not smack the Mavericks with more than 30 points and more than 10 rebounds.
"In the first half, I came out aggressive and tried to get going but it just took me a little longer," said Stoudemire, who finished with 33 points and 18 rebounds. "In the second half, we came out strong and I came out strong.
"I can't wait for Game 6."
That's Friday in Dallas.
Stoudemire's effort made Dallas pay for its smaller lineups, contributing to Phoenix's 66 points in the paint.
"That number should probably be for three games," Dallas coach Avery Johnson said.
Every Stoudemire point came off a dunk, layup or free throw as the Mavericks' supposed answer for him, center Erick Dampier, offered another low-impact, odd-numbered game.
It was Nash naturally leading the Suns back to their freelance game. With Phoenix running and spreading the floor, Stoudemire could not be schemed and Nash could return to the role of distributor who draws energy from all.
Nash's line of 34 points, 13 rebounds and 12 assists gave him his third career triple-double, two of which have come in this MVP season. Who else could top a 48-point night in the next game?
"We did not follow the game plan and they just shredded us . . . shredded us to pieces," Johnson said.
But a late third-quarter wane gave Dallas one last shot at holding a slim 77-76 lead. Jackson took over, harkening back to his days as a star high school point guard. His aggressive drives resulted in 10 points in the fourth quarter's first six minutes to put Phoenix ahead 94-83.
Suns President and General Manager Bryan Colangelo should have received his Executive of the Year trophy right then for the midseason trade for Jackson that is saving Phoenix while Joe Johnson wears a pinstripe suit.
Jackson, starting for Johnson, went 7 of 8 in the fourth quarter for 15 of his 21 points.
When Jackson came to the sideline in a timeout during the flurry, he looked at Johnson and pointed to his armband that reads "JJ 2."
"I personally want to make sure he can play on so he can enjoy the fruits of his labor," Jackson said.
Key Number
14 - Suns advantage in rebounds (56-42), just the second time in the series they were able to outrebound Dallas. The Mavericks had run up a 95-81 edge in the two games in Dallas.
Turning point
With Steve Nash resting on the bench and the Mavericks leading by one, the Suns ran off nine straight points in the first 2:38 of the fourth quarter and never trailed the rest of the way.
Looking ahead
Phoenix re-established several key elements - most notably rebounding and the pick-and-roll - and kept its composure. Now, the task is to maintain focus when it tries to close out the series Friday at 6 p.m. in Dallas.
Game 5: Quarter by quarter
1st Quarter
Score: Dallas 29-25
Stat: Shawn Marion and Amaré Stoudemire were a combined 3 of 11 from the field.
Synopsis: Phoenix hit its first four three-pointers and was still trailing midway through the quarter. Mavericks sixth man Jerry Stackhouse's hot shooting was good for 11 points.
2nd Quarter
Score: Dallas 55-48
Stat: After two fast-break points in Game 4's first half, the Suns had four Wednesday.
Synopsis: Steve Nash had a 12-point, nine-assist, half, but his teammates shot 38 percent. Stoudemire ended the half with a third foul running out on a three-point try.
3rd Quarter
Score: Dallas 77-76
Stat: After taking a 76-71 lead, Phoenix went 0 for 5 with two turnovers to end the quarter.
Synopsis: Suns took first lead since the opening minutes, but lost it as they failed to capitalize on crowd energy and let Stackhouse add another eight points.
4th Quarter
Score: Phoenix 114-108
Stat: Stoudemire scored 15 fourth-quarter points and grabbed six rebounds.
Synopsis: Jim Jackson sparked a 9-0 run that started the quarter, scoring six points, and hit seven of eight shots overall in the fourth to break open a tight game.
http://www.azcentral.com/sports/suns/articles/0519suns-main0519.html
