Durant's winner lifts Thunder past Mavs, 99-98

OKLAHOMA CITY (AP) Kevin Durant was determined to not let the Oklahoma City Thunder lose another playoff game at home to Dallas.

He scored 25 points and hit the winning jumper from the foul line with 1.5 seconds left to give the Thunder a 99-98 victory over the Mavericks on Saturday night in Game 1 of the first-round playoff series - a rematch of last year's Western Conference finals.

The Thunder trailed by seven with 2 1/2 minutes left before rallying to take the first step toward avenging a 4-1 series loss a year ago.

''It's the playoffs,'' Durant said. ''No matter how it gets done, you've got to do it.''

With his team trailing by one late in the fourth quarter, he forced his way toward the lane and found himself with defenders closing in and the clock winding down.

Durant maneuvered to the free throw line and got off a high-arcing shot over Shawn Marion that hit off the front of the rim and then off the backboard before falling through the net.

The defending NBA champion Mavericks, who were out of timeouts, could not get a shot off before the buzzer.

''If you have a timeout, you can move the ball (to half-court) and maybe have a look at it,'' said Dirk Nowitzki, who had hit two free throws with 9 seconds left to put Dallas ahead. ''But if you don't have a timeout, that's definitely a buzzer-beater.''

Nowitzki scored 11 of his 25 points in the final 5 minutes, going on a personal 7-1 run that made it 92-85 with 3:23 to go.

He then answered Russell Westbrook's layup with a foul line jumper to restore the seven-point advantage, but it didn't prove to be enough.

''It's tough. This is definitely as tough of a loss as you can get,'' Nowitzki said. ''But if a team can recover it, it's an experienced one and we definitely have a lot of older guys who have been through a lot.''

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Odom done playing for Mavericks

By STEPHEN HAWKINS | The Associated Press

DALLAS (AP) The Dallas Mavericks and Lamar Odom are done with each other.

The NBA's reigning Sixth Man of the Year and the defending NBA champions who are trying to make sure they get back to the playoffs made it clear Monday that the partnership is over after an underwhelming 50-game stint.

''We've got to be able to look down that bench and count on folks to be consistent,'' general manager Donnie Nelson said. ''Unfortunately with him in his state right now, he's just not capable of doing that. I say that with his best interest in mind. He's going through a very, very tough personal time. We certainly understand that. But we're in the thick of it in the West and we've got to win games.''

Odom will be on the inactive list and not play again for the Mavericks, who were seventh in the Western Conference standings with nine games left in the regular season.
Even when wife and reality TV co-star Khloe Kardashian was in the stands near the Mavericks bench, Odom never seemed happy or comfortable in Dallas. His averages of 6.6 points, 4.2 rebounds and 20.5 minutes were career lows, and he was booed by the home crowd as the sluggish performances multiplied.

Odom agreed with Nelson that it was a mutual decision for him to step away from the team.

''I'm sorry that things didn't work out better for both of us,'' Odom told ESPN.com. ''But I wish the Mavs' organization, my teammates and Dallas fans nothing but continued success in the defense of their championship.''

Odom was traded from the Los Angeles Lakers to Dallas in a deal just before the lockout-shortened season.

The Lakers seemed compelled to move the 6-foot-10 forward after trying to send him to New Orleans in a Chris Paul deal that was nixed by the league. For the Mavericks, it was considered a low-risk move to use the trade exception from a deal that sent Tyson Chandler to the New York Knicks.

The ending in Dallas came almost as abruptly.

''These things never come at the best of times, so we felt with the playoff push coming up it was probably in everyone's best interest,'' Nelson said. ''Look, it's been a frustrating situation. Lamar hasn't performed like he wants to perform, is capable of performing. ... We just need to move on.''

Nelson said the decision wasn't made sooner because there was hope at some point ''the light goes on'' for Odom. But that never happened, even after being away from the team for four games around the All-Star break for personal reasons.

Asked if the Mavs felted cheated by Odom, Nelson insisted they didn't ''because the player that he was last year, there's reasons for that not happening this year, some of which none of us will know.''

During the lockout last summer, Odom's 24-year-old cousin was murdered. Days after that, Odom was involved in a fatal car accident that killed a teen pedestrian after the car he was riding in as a passenger collided with a motorcycle.

Odom played only four minutes in a 94-89 loss at Memphis on Saturday night, his last game with Dallas. Asked afterward about the situation, Odom simply shrugged his shoulders.

Mavericks star Dirk Nowitzki, who defended Odom all season, simply said ''I'm done talking about that,'' after the Memphis game.

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Nowitzki jumper leads Mavericks past Magic, 100-98

By KYLE HIGHTOWER
Posted Mar 31 2012 2:01AM

ORLANDO, Fla. (AP) There's something about playing on Orlando's floor lately that seems to bring out the best in the Dallas Mavericks.

Dirk Nowitzki banked in a 15-foot jumper over Hedo Turkoglu with 5.9 seconds as Dallas overcame a 15-point deficit to beat the Magic 100-98 on Friday night. It was the Mavericks' sixth straight victory in Orlando.

Dallas improved to just 2-19 this season when trailing entering the fourth quarter.

The Mavericks rallied in the final period, aided by a plethora of turnovers and missed shots by the Magic. Jason Terry had 10 points in the quarter and 17 in the game. Delonte West and Shawn Marion each added 15.

"We almost looked down a little bit," Nowitzki said. "Guys were putting their heads down. But we're a too good for that. We have to keep competing. I'm proud of the guys. D-West really changed the momentum of the game. And Jet (Terry) getting hot in there. Guys just battling for each other. That's what we've got to do."

Orlando shot 11 for 32 on 3-pointers, but had 16 turnovers, which led to 20 points for the Mavericks. Eight of those giveaways came in the final 14 minutes of the game and just after the Magic had taken their largest lead.

"Watching Orlando all year long we know that they're a team that has relinquished a lot of leads ... just the way they play," Terry said. "They're either going inside or they're shooting 3's. You live by the 3 or you die by it."

Jameer Nelson scored 24 points to lead Orlando. Ryan Anderson added 21, and Dwight Howard finished with 19 points and 15 rebounds.

The Magic had two chances to tie or win the game possession, but Turkoglu missed a jumper from the wing and Anderson's tip-in trickled off the back of the rim as time expired.

Orlando led by just seven entering the final period before the Mavericks, sparked by a surging Terry, tied it at 89 with 5:58 to play in the game.

The Magic helped Dallas get back into the game committing six of their 16 turnovers in the period.

Things got heated down the stretch as Nowitzki and Anderson went right at each other.

Anderson was called for a blocking foul guarding Nowitzki that drew the ire of Magic fans with 4 minutes left. But he gave Orlando a small cushion on the other end with an offensive rebound and put back to make it 95-91.

Dallas wasn't done, though.

A 3-pointer by West brought them to 97-96 and after a foul by Anderson, West's two free throws put the Mavericks on top.

A missed jumper by Nowitzki put the ball in Nelson's hands, and he was fouled going in for a layup on the other end. He only connected on one of his two ensuing free throws, though, giving the Mavericks their final shot with 25.1 remaining.

Howard seemed to lament the Magic's shot selection in the closing minutes.

"They did what they were supposed to do in the fourth quarter," Howard said. "They got a good shot every time. You don't have to be a championship caliber team to do that. You just have to understand that when you come down in the fourth quarter, you've got to get a good shot."

Brendan Haywood returned to the starting lineup after missing seven games with a right knee sprain and played 26 minutes. He only had five points, buts frustrated Howard throughout that time. Howard also was unable to capitalize on his trips to the free-throw line, going just 7 for 16. The Magic were 17 for 28 as a team.

The Magic were the more active team offensively early in the first half, taking their biggest lead at 32-19 in the opening minutes of the second quarter.

A 12-0 Mavericks run that featured seven points by Nowitzki got it down to a point before the Magic found their footing again and took it back up to double-digits. Orlando would up taking a nine-point edge into the locker room.

Nowitzki led all scorers with 18 in the half. Anderson topped the Magic with 12 points.

Mavericks' coach Rick Carlisle said the lasting feeling from Friday was the toughness team showed.

"We hung in there," Carlisle said. "We were down 15 and just chipped away. We showed a lot of fortitude, a lot of grit and lot of togetherness. We had some people step up."
Was it a championship-caliber performance?

"We've got work to do. We have lofty goals, but we've got 13 games to go and we've got a lot of improvement left," he said.

NOTES: With Louisville and Kentucky set to meet in the Final Four on Saturday, Magic F Earl Cark, a former Cardinals standout, said he has full confidence in his underdog alma mater. But he didn't make any prop bets with teammates and former Wildcats Daniel Orton and DeAndre Liggins. "Nope. Straight cash," Clark said. ... Dallas coach Rick Carlisle received a technical foul in the second quarter. ... Band members from the Red Hot Chili Peppers sat courtside. They have concert at Amway Center on Saturday.