The Dallas Mavericks left home last week with two wins and a swagger. They staggered back on Monday after three losses to the Miami Heat, teetering on the brink of elimination from the NBA finals.
But a big bunch of irrepressible fans reminded the Mavs that although their backs are against the wall, that wall is deep in the heart of Dallas -- and in these finals, the homecourt advantage has been the only factor more important than Dwyane Wade.
The Mavericks' disastrous week in South Florida culminated on Sunday in the Heat's memorable 101-100 overtime win, featuring 43 points and two winning free throws from Wade. Dallas' flight home was dour and quiet -- but the cheering, flag-waving faithful awaiting their plane snapped the Mavs out of a funk, hopefully just in time for Game 6 yesterday.
"That was the first smile I had all night, all morning," said Jason Terry, who scored 35 points in Game 5. "I saw the fans out there at the airport, and I knew it was home sweet home."
Terry speaks the truth about these finals: For the first time in 30 years, the home teams are unbeaten in the first five games. If Dallas still hopes to win its first championship, the Mavs must make it the first finals with seven home-team winners since 1955 -- or they'll watch Wade and Shaquille O'Neal celebrate the Heat's first title in Dallas.
"I can taste it, smell it, see it," said Miami center Alonzo Mourning, who persevered through 13 seasons and kidney disease in search of his first NBA championship. "It's going to take everybody being an active participant to do it, but I really feel that's going to happen Tuesday."
If it doesn't, a decisive Game 7 will be played tomorrow.
In a series between first-time finalists, it isn't psychologically surprising to see both teams leaning heavily on home cooking and crowd support.
Both coaches have been dismayed by their teams' tentative play on the road, but the pressure of the finals can even send millionaire seven-footers looking for comfort.
Though Wade needed plenty of shots and nearly as many free throws, he has made his first indelible mark as a pro with 121 total points in the last three games. But he knows the Heat will need even more firepower to win in Dallas for the first time since 2002 -- and to beat an opponent that's lost just nine home games all season.
"We knew we didn't play any good games in Dallas," Wade said.
"When you go on the road and you don't play good games, then you turn the ball over, it's hard to win ... It's going to be very tough, but that's why we play this game -- for these moments," he said.
Dallas coach Avery Johnson's best adjustment for Game 6 simply might be his players' change into their home white shirts. What's more, top reserve Jerry Stackhouse will be back on the Mavericks' bench after sitting out Game 5 for his aggressive foul on O'Neal three nights earlier.
Bayer 04 Leverkusen go into today’s match at TSG 1899 Hoffenheim stung from their first league defeat in 16 months. Leverkusen were beaten 3-2 at home by RB Leipzig before the international break, the first loss since May last year for the reigning league and cup champions. While any defeat, particularly against a likely title rival, would have disappointed coach Xabi Alonso, the way in which it happened would be most concerning. Just as they did in the Supercup against VfB Stuttgart and in the league opener to Borussia Moenchengladbach, Leverkusen scored first, but were pegged back. However, while Leverkusen rallied late to
If all goes well when the biggest marathon field ever gathered in Australia races 42km through the streets of Sydney on Sunday, World Marathon Majors (WMM) will soon add a seventh race to the elite series. The Sydney Marathon is to become the first race since Tokyo in 2013 to join long-established majors in New York, London, Boston, Berlin and Chicago if it passes the WMM assessment criteria for the second straight year. “We’re really excited for Sunday to arrive,” race director Wayne Larden told a news conference in Sydney yesterday. “We’re prepared, we’re ready. All of our plans look good on
The lights dimmed and the crowd hushed as Karoline Kristensen entered for her performance. However, this was no ordinary Dutch theater: The temperature was 80°C and the audience naked apart from a towel. Dressed in a swimsuit and to the tune of emotional music, the 21-year-old Kristensen started her routine, performed inside a large sauna, with a bed of hot rocks in the middle. For a week this month, a group of wellness practitioners, called “sauna masters,” are gathering at a picturesque health resort in the Netherlands to compete in this year’s Aufguss world sauna championships. The practice takes its name from a
When details from a scientific experiment that could have helped clear Russian figure skater Kamila Valieva landed at the World Anti-Doping Agency (WADA), the leader of the organization’s reaction was unequivocal: “We have to stop that urgently,” he wrote. No mention of the test ever became public and Valieva’s defense at the Court of Arbitration for Sport (CAS) went on without it. What effect the information could have had on Valieva’s case is unclear, but without it, the skater, then 15 years old, was eventually disqualified from the 2022 Winter Olympics after testing positive for a banned heart medication that would later