KANSAN.COM / THE UNIVERSITY DAILY KANSAN / TUESDAY, MAY 10, 2011 / SPORTS
9A
QUOTE OF THE DAY
"I was at Yankee Stadium one time at 5 a.m., but that was to buy angel dust."
Comedian Artie Lange
FACT OF THE DAY
The Royals have an MLB-high 15 home victories as they visit the Yankees tonight.
— yahoo.com
TRIVIA OF THE DAY Q: Which player leads the Yankees in home runs?
A: Curtis Granderson, with 11
—yahoo.com
MORNING BREW
Mavs on an unexpected playoff tear
No one saw it coming — at least not like this. On Sunday, the Dallas Mavericks kicked the Los Angeles Lakers off their throne atop the NBA, opening the coveted position to any of the remaining teams.
Now a train is rolling through the NBA playoffs that is going to be very tough to slow down.
The four-game sweep of the Lakers shifts the NBA spotlight to a Mavs team that put together an impressive regular season, finishing third in the Western conference, and appears to be putting the pieces together for an even more impressive postseason.
The Mavericks finished the regular season with an impressive record of 57-25 and had a first round matchup with the Portland Trail Blazers.
Dallas won both Game 1 and Game 2 at home in the American Airlines Center. They then traveled to Portland and lost the following two games to the Trail Blazers by a combined total of seven points. Dallas, led by Dirk Nowitzki's 58 points combined in the next two games, took the series, setting up the showdown with Los Angeles.
BY MIKE VERNON
mvernon@kansan.com
No one thought the Mavericks would beat the Lakers in four games. Heck, no one really thought the Mavs were going to beat the Lakers in the first place. But, after being led by Nowitzki, Jason Terry and Jason Kidd, the Mavs found themselves taking the first two games of the series in Los Angeles, no less
The two veteran-laden teams then headed back to Dallas, where the Mavs went 29-12 in the regular season. Dallas squeaked out a six-
point victory, in which Nowitzki's 32 points put them over the top to go ahead 3-0 in the series. Then, with their foot over the Lakers' neck, Dallas, led by 32 points from Terry, did the unthinkable and completed the sweep, squashing the Lakers by nearly 30 points.
Next up for the Mavericks will be the winner of the Oklahoma City-Memphis series. Memphis, the underdogs on paper, won three of four against the Mavs in the regular season, but it's been well over a month since the two played last. The Mavericks won two games in Oklahoma City this year, and the Thunder's lone win against Dallas came on a four-point victory in the Lone Star State.
The Bulls coming out of the East would potentially provide a tough matchup for the Mavs — the Bulls beat Dallas twice by five in the regular season. The games were close though, and Dirk may be a man on a mission, especially if he gets another chance after almost missing out on a ring in '06 when Dallas lost to the Miami Heat.
The six game series was a close one three of the Heat's four wins came by three points or less. The potential revenge matchup could have fans drooling in excitement—or disgust. Both the Mavs and the Heat are two of the more disliked teams in the NBA, but with names like Wade, Kidd, James, Nowitzki, Bosh and Cuban, of course, there would surely be plenty of gunpowder just waiting to be lit.
This season, Dallas beat Miami both times in the two games they played. The playoffs, however, are a completely different story from the regular season.
Maybe the Heat will romp through the playoffs and take their seat atop the world's best, or maybe Derek Rose will carry the Bulls to the league's pinnacle.
Or maybe, just maybe, Mark Cuban will finally get his turn to sit on the throne and be crowned NBA champion.
-Edited by Erin Wilbert
THIS WEEK IN KANSAS ATHLETICS
TODAY
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WEDNESDAY
THURSDAY
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FRIDAY
Baseball
vs. Alabama A&M
6 p.m.
Lawrence
Track
Big 12 Outdoor
Championships
All day
Norman, Okla.
SATURDAY
Baseball
vs. Alabama A&M
2 p.m.
Lawrence
vs. Alabama A&M
5 p.m.
Lawrence
Track
Big 12 Outdoor
Championships
All day
Norman, Okla.
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