Mavericks Have Edge if It Is a Numbers Game

Only seven field goals and 21 missed shots combined from Dallas Mavericks All-Star forward Dirk Nowitzki and standout forward Josh Howard in Game 1 of the NBA Finals.

No problem.

Guard Jason Terry scored a game-high 32 points in Thursday’s 90-80 victory over the Miami Heat at American Airlines Center, and wasn’t that familiar?

Even if a leading man or two has an occasional clunker performance, the Mavericks say they’re not worried because of the team’s supporting cast.

The versatile group is among the reasons the Mavericks are in their first Finals and could be another problem for the Heat in Game 2 Sunday night.

“Yeah, Dirk and Josh struggled, but J.T. stepped up huge, and that’s happened all throughout the year,” Mavericks assistant coach and scout Paul Mokeski said. “You have to have guys step up and pick up the slack, especially when you go this deep in the playoffs, and that’s what these guys know how to do.”

Nowitzki (16 points, 10 rebounds) and Howard (10 points, 12 rebounds) contributed despite their shooting problems, but Terry and others made things easier for them.

Reserve guard Jerry Stackhouse provided 13 points and toughness. Backup center Erick Dampier scored eight points, grabbed seven rebounds and helped starter DeSagana Diop wrestle inside with Miami All-Star center Shaquille O’Neal, who scored only 17 points. The Heat got two points from its bench.

“Everybody’s got 12 to 15 guys on their team, but when you’ve got quality guys who can come in and play and perform, and are not scared, that’s half the battle,” Stackhouse said. “There are a lot of guys in the NBA on these benches who just aren’t ready to contribute, but we’re not one of those teams.”

Coach Avery Johnson determined the Mavericks needed to become more flexible after they lost to the Phoenix Suns in last season’s Western Conference semifinals, so Johnson and owner Mark Cuban went to work in the off-season.

Dallas signed the 7-foot Diop to bolster the post defense, and swingman Adrian Griffin to help on the perimeter. Those moves -- and the development of second-year point guard Devin Harris and third-year guard Marquis Daniels -- enabled Johnson to push his defense-first agenda while also providing more options on offense because of matchup advantages.

“Our bench has done a great job,” Howard said. “Regardless of who in the starting lineup is having a bad game, we always have at least one person coming off that bench performing and producing for us.”

Depth helped the Mavericks overcome injuries to key players and finish with the NBA’s third-best record. They eliminated the defending champion San Antonio Spurs in the conference semifinals, defeated the Suns to qualify for the Finals and are off to a good start against the Heat.

“One of the things I wanted to do in the off-season was get a team that had some interchangeable parts, and that’s what we’ve done,” said Johnson, the NBA’s coach of the year.

“We have a lot of different ways we can go ... different lineups that we can use. When we’ve been healthy, which has not been a lot this year, we have been fortunate to use a lot of different lineups, and play at different speeds, because of our depth.”

Miami plays at a slow pace when O’Neal is on the court, and Coach Pat Riley sticks with an eight-man rotation.

The Heat’s lack of depth might have been a factor in its poor finish in Game 1. Terry scored 12 points in the fourth to match Miami’s total, and the Heat missed 15 of 20 shots.

Dallas used multiple defenders on Dwyane Wade and he was ineffective late in the game.

“My legs were kind of going out on me later in the game,” said Wade, who led the Heat with 28 points. “I didn’t have the energy I normally have, [but] it doesn’t matter if it’s one guy sticking on you through the game. I don’t worry about that.”

And although the Mavericks’ supporting cast had a show-stopping performance, Riley said Miami’s role players would catch up.

“I surely am not going to overreact,” Riley said. “But we need to get more guys stepping up to get timely shots.”

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NBA Finals

DALLAS VS. MIAMI

Mavericks lead series, 1-0

All games are at 6 p.m. Pacific on Channel 7 (*if necessary).

*--* GAME 1: at Dallas 90, Miami 80 GAME 2: at Dallas, Sunday GAME 3: at Miami, Tuesday GAME 4: at Miami, Thursday GAME 5: at Miami, June 18* GAME 6: at Dallas, June 20* GAME 7: at Dallas, June 22*

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