Mavericks take surprising 2-0 lead on Lakers heading back to Dallas

If this season turns into the special one the Dallas Mavericks hope it will be, they're going to look back at Wednesday night's game against the Los Angeles Lakers as the turning point.
With an opportunity to put the two-time defending NBA champions on their heels, the Mavericks seized the moment in a very big way with a convincing 93-81 victory at Staples Center. The win enabled Dallas to take a surprising 2-0 lead in the best-of-seven Western Conference semifinal series after it stunningly won both games in LA.
In fact, now that the Mavs will host Games 3 and 4 Friday and Sunday at American Airlines Center, they actually could sweep and win this series without having to come back to the West Coast.
And who would have imagined that happening before this series started?
"We're a great road team because we're resilient," center Brendan Haywood said. "We're a family - everybody roots for each other.
"And we have a lot of different guys that can hit big shots. So on the road usually when we're down, we never feel that we're out of it."
The Mavs led the majority of the game, using poise and solid defense to carry a 68-62 lead into the fourth quarter. The lead swelled to 75-65 with 9:46 remaining after Haywood converted an offensive rebound, Jason Terry buried a 3-pointer and J.J. Barea coaxed in a pair of free throws.
The Lakers closed to six, but Barea struck again. This time the pint-sized playmaker hit a floater, then fed Haywood for a thundering dunk and a 79-69 lead with 6:05 remaining.
A three-point basket by Jason Kidd and a driving layup by Barea padded the Mavs' advantage to 84-69 with 4:39 left. From there, the Lakers were pressured unlike they have been at any point during these playoffs.
LA's biggest problem was its long-range shooting. It was 0 for 15 from 3-point range until Kobe Bryant hit one late in the fourth quarter, and wound up 2 for 20. The Mavs were 8 of 25.
Dirk Nowitzki scored 21 of his 24 points through the first three quarters, and things got so bad for the Lakers that their fans booed them on a couple of occasions.
Shawn Marion added 14 points and nine rebounds for the Mavericks, Barea scored 12 with four assists and Kidd added 10 points and six assists.
DeShawn Stevenson also played a major role for the Mavs at both ends of the floor. The scrappy guard converted three 3-pointers through the first three periods - the last one a bank shot that pushed Dallas ahead 56-50 early in the third period.
Kobe Bryant led LA with 23 points on 9-of-20 shooting. Andrew Bynum scored 18 and grabbed 13 rebounds, Pau Gasol contributed 13 points and 10 rebounds, and Ron Artest scored 11 before he was ejected with under a minute left for clobbering Barea in the face.
Not many so-called basketball experts gave the Mavs a chance in this series. Still, despite having the NBA kingpins on the ropes, Haywood and his teammates aren't about to celebrate too soon.
"When you're playing against this Lakers team you can never relax," Haywood said. "2-0, that's good.
"But we will never relax until we see we have Game 4 wrapped up."
"The challenge is to be consistent in our attack," said Terry, who had nine points and five assists. "Defensively, continue to play the way we play.
"Offensively, continue to be aggressive and stay with the flow."
It was that "flow" which put the Mavs in position to shock the world.

Lakers' book may be nearing its final chapter sooner than expected

LOS ANGELES -- It was all so funny at the time.
Before the Lakers' incredible era reached this unforeseen point of peril Wednesday night, their coach was being pestered about his latest book. This was the one that hadn't been written yet, the chapters of Phil Jackson's final season unfolding with every passing day but the actual idea of publication a ways off in his mind.
"The book is way, way, way down the road," he said with his trademark wryness. "It has no function, no form, no structure yet, no outline. Nothing."
What it might have, as it turns out, is a surprise ending.
Dallas delivered a devastating blow to the Lakers' quest for a three-peat at Staples Center, taking a 2-0 lead in the Western Conference Semifinals with a 93-81 win that left the locals incensed about the plot twist and the notion of a 12th championship looking unlikely for the man who swears this stand will be his last.
The loyalists rained boos on their stunned Lakers late, none louder than the ones reserved for embattled forward Pau Gasol during his third-quarter stretch that served as the low point of his already-dark time. Hopeless fans headed for the exits long before the score would seem to dictate such dissonance, clearly fed up from either the sight of backup Dallas point guard J.J. Barea slicing through the nonexistent Lakers defense or the cacophony of clankers as the Lakers shot 2-of-20 from three-point range and 11-of-20 from the free-throw line.
Jackson had started the evening wishing his team would be "a little more lighthearted about" its latest challenge because, well, "it's still a game." Find your place of Zen like he had in recent days, he was saying, perhaps through the sort of "comic relief" he had relied upon.
Afterward? There were heavy hearts and nary a smile in Laker Land.
Ron Artest was the only one taking out his frustrations before the game ended, as he inexplicably clotheslined Barea with 24 seconds left and was promptly ejected as a likely prelude to a suspension. Andrew Bynum came with the verbal blow not long after, when the center, who has quietly become a willing and capable voice in the locker room, gave his candid assessment of a dire situation.
"It's obvious that we have trust issues, individually," said Bynum, who had 18 points and 13 rebounds but gave himself and "F (or a) D" because of his involvement in the disastrous defense.
"All 13 of our guys have trust issues right now. I think it's quite obvious to anyone watching the game. (There's) hesitation on passes, and defensively we're not being a good teammate because he wasn't there for you before. Little things. And unless we come out and discuss them, nothing is going to change."
Gasol, who had just 13 points on 5-of-12 shooting and was one of the many who couldn't contain Dirk Nowitzki (24 points on 9-of-16 shooting), did not agree.
"I don't think we have trust issues," he said. "You've got to be able to give that trust to your teammates. Once we feel that, (the Mavericks will) feel that. But right now, they're getting a lot of looks -- a lot of good looks, too many good looks, and they're penetrating our defense way too much.
"Obviously 0-2 makes everybody upset. Us, and our fans. That's not what we wanted. That's not what we expected, but that's where we're at. Right now it's time for us to stay strong and as close as we've ever been if we want to be able to be successful and get through this struggle."
Gasol would know, of course, because no one is looking more like the fall guy at the moment. After averaging 19.6 points and 11.1 rebounds while shooting 53.9 percent from the field in last year's postseason, he is now averaging 13.6 points and 7.8 rebounds while shooting just 42.7 percent from the field this time around.
"He missed open shots, he missed a layup that was blocked at the rim because he didn't dunk it," Jackson said. "There are some things that obviously didn't look good out there for Pau, but he worked...He was one of the kids that looked tired tonight."
The Lakers continue to downplay the fatigue factor, not only from this season in which the target remained firmly on their back, but the miles logged from three straight trips to the Finals. Whatever the reason, the mountain of evidence against them is now taller than Bynum and Gasol combined.
Jackson had already experienced an unwanted new experience, having seen his team lose the first game of a series twice in the same postseason after doing the same against New Orleans in the first round. Now comes this: only three teams in NBA history have come back to win a best-of-seven series after losing the first two games at home.
"It's hard, but you can't possibly expect this to be easy," said Bryant, who had 23 points on 9-of-20 shooting. "If you want to make history, you've got to do historic things.
"I'm not shocked. I'm surprised, (but) I'm not shocked. We've been playing with fire the last three years dropping games on our home floor. We finally got what we deserved and we're down two (games)."
The Mavericks, who used a 22-9 run between the late third quarter and mid-fourth to pull away, look primed to provide even more comeuppance. The book isn't over just yet, but the end may be near

Star finally shines for Red Bulls

Pride can be a hell of a motivator, and on a rainy and miserably night at Red Bull Arena, it was enough to motivate an international star with an incredible resume to dig deeper and remind us of just what he can do.

The dirt was already starting to hit the casket of Henry's career after he limped through the first month of the MLS season, but on Saturday he moved with purpose, created countless chances and served as the driving force in New York's emphatic 3-0 win against San Jose.

Yes, he missed his share of good chances, but the Frenchman was all over the field, working to set up a goal and ending his own goal drought with a thundering header to close out the scoring.

Henry had been booed by New York fans at times for his earlier misses, a product of his struggles this season, which might have explained his angry celebration following his goal, which consisted of him telling some of his own fans to be quiet before slamming his chest and pointing adamantly at the name on the back of his jersey.

The message was clear. In case you forgot, he's still Thierry Henry, and he can still play.

The passion and the quality of play Henry showed was a far cry from the lethargic and ineffective performances of the first month of the season, and if he is truly ready to be the sort of impact player he was brought to New York to be, then the Red Bulls have to once again be considered Real Salt Lake's stiffest competition for the league title.

As impressive as Henry's breakout game was, the star striker had to share the headlines with English forward Luke Rodgers, who scored two goals and set up Henry's finish. Red Bulls head coach Hans Backe made the curious decision to bench U.S. national team striker Juan Agudelo and start Rodgers, who had looked underwhelming to that point in the season, but Rodgers responded in impressive fashion, earning MLS Player of the Week honors in the process.

Rodgers' performance, coupled with Henry's, will make Backe's lineup decisions that much tougher. He isn't likely to complain though, not with many of his starters expected to miss matches this summer during the Gold Cup. If Henry can keep playing with passion and purpose, those weeks in June won't seem as daunting, and Henry won't have to keep reminding people who he is.

Davies does it again

Charlie Davies earned his first start for D.C. United against Toronto FC and responded with a dynamic performance that produced one goal and helped D.C. post a vital 3-0 road win against Toronto FC.

Davies notched his league-leading fifth goal from the run of play rather than the penalty spot like three of his previous goals, and his mobility was clearly a factor in unsettling a vulnerable Toronto defense.

D.C. head coach Ben Olsen had to be happy with Davies' performance, but may have been even happier to see midfielder Chris Pontius score two goals. Coming off a year plagued by injuries, Pontius has really started to come on strong and has played well enough to keep Designated Player Branco Boskovic on the bench.

Galaxy wins without stars

Playing without Landon Donovan, David Beckham and Juninho, the Los Angeles Galaxy figured to struggle in the final game of a long road trip, but instead delivered one of its best games of the season in a 2-1 win against Chicago.

The Galaxy's midfield depth was on full display, with the trio of Miguel Lopez, Paolo Cardozo and Michael Stephens working well in place of LA's missing stars. It shouldn't come as a surprise that a Bruce Arena side could adapt without its top players. The Galaxy has actually done well when missing its best, as evidenced by last season's strong run without Beckham (then on loan with AC Milan before being injured) and Landon Donovan (away at the World Cup).

Los Angeles will gladly welcome Donovan, Beckham and Juninho back, though. All three will be key to the Galaxy closing the gap that already exists between LA and first-place Real Salt Lake.

MLS Player of the Week

Portland winger Kalif Alhassan was a terror in both of the Portland Timbers' victories last week, including a pair of nifty assists in the Timbers' 3-2 win against FC Dallas. The quick and shifty Ghanaian midfielder has formed a good tandem with right winger Jeremy Hall to give the Timbers dynamic flank options, creating space for forwards Kenny Cooper and Jorge Perlaza.

MLS Rookie of the Week

New England didn't win either of its games last week, but rookie A.J. Soares continues to impress as a starting centerback for the Revolution. The first senior taken in the draft, Soares has played well enough to force veteran Ryan Cochrane to the bench, and he was steady in the back yet again vs. Houston, which manage one goal on a fluke play.

MLS Team of the Week

Portland Timbers. Riding a tangible home-field advantage, the Timbers opened Jeld-Wen Field with a pair of high-scoring victories last week. Beating a struggling Chicago side for its first win was good, but the real convincing result was beating a strong FC Dallas team, 3-2. Surrendering multiple goals in each win was a bit troubling