Kings Answer the Bells
DALLAS — Fast times coming in the Original Cowbell Dome.
Now Kings of Texas, too, No. 1-seeded Sacramento is coming home with a 3-1 lead in this Western Conference semifinal series, after rallying from 14 points behind Saturday without Peja Stojakovic, losing Chris Webber and Vlade Divac to fouls, and still defeating the high-powered Dallas Mavericks in overtime, 115-113.
“We got good production out of everybody and they beat us,” said deflated Maverick Coach Don Nelson. “I think that says something about them.”
The Kings are feeling good about themselves again after averaging 112.5 points in this series, winning twice here--they’re 3-1 on the road this postseason--and watching their role players outplay the young Maverick stars.
Point guard Mike Bibby, playing in his first postseason, scored 24 points and the biggest ones, too, driving the lane for a left-handed layup to tie the score at the end of regulation, then driving the baseline for a right-handed layup for the winning basket with 12 seconds left in overtime.
Bibby has averaged 21.5 points in the series, outscoring the more celebrated Steve Nash, 86-81.
“Steve has had one good game,” noted Nelson before Game 4, “but Bibby has had three.”
Make that four.
“Mike’s only problem,” said Webber, the old Jason Williams fan, “he’s so good, he got drafted by a terrible team [the Vancouver Grizzlies, who traded him for Williams last summer] and had to play there for three seasons....
“With this point guard that we have, every game that he plays, he shows you something different. And he shows you that he’s a point guard. I feel great that I have a true point guard, one that he can either score 20 ... or he can get 20 assists, and it’s all about what he wants to do....
“I hope people do start talking about him more, but if they don’t, that’s OK because I know him. I know he’ll put that aside and try to punch somebody the next time we play them.”
With Stojakovic out with a badly sprained ankle, this looked like a long day for the Kings when the Mavericks hit them with a 12-1 run to open the game.
But then the Mavericks’ layup-line defense began parting to let various Kings stroll to the hoop and the shootout was on again.
The Kings trailed, 54-51, at the half, by 14 in the third quarter and 12 in the fourth quarter until never-say-die Bobby Jackson scored 13 points in a 17-4 run that popped the Kings into the lead for the first time, obliging Nelson to sit Nick Van Exel, who’d been guarding Jackson, more or less.
Jackson is normally the Kings’ No. 3 guard.
He started the game because Stojakovic was out but did nothing in the first half, taking five shots and missing four.
“Bobby’s the kind of guy, you’ve just kind of got to let him go,” said King Coach Rick Adelman. “If he’s on the court enough minutes, something’s going to happen. Could be bad, but lots of times it’s very good.”
With the lead see-sawing back and forth, Webber fouled out with 4:45 left, followed to the bench by Divac with 3:56 left in overtime.
The Mavericks then wilted as the Kings beat them to loose ball after loose ball and rebound after rebound, getting 12 shots in the overtime to six for Dallas.
Finally, after missing eight shots in three possessions while the Mavericks missed two and turned the ball over once, Bibby drove the baseline, into the empty heart of the Maverick defense and laid the ball up for the winning basket.
Nelson, asked if he’d throw the full arsenal at Adelman in Game 5, broke out laughing.
“He’s seen the full arsenal all four games,” he said.
So far, it’s not enough.
