Game 78: Mavs vs Jazz

The Mavs tore up Phoenix in their last game, a team which would normally make the playoffs, but for whatever reason, the Western Conference has 9 teams who are going to finish over 500, whereas the East currently have 5 who will finish over 500 and two more are on the lower side of the bubble and one more, who has clinched a playoff spot, over the bubble.

The Jazz have clinched a playoff spot and are currently seeded seventh in the rankings. The Mavericks are fourth in their division and 3.5 games behind first place in their division behind the Spurs, and are seeded eighth in the conference but haven't clinched a playoff spot just yet.

A look at the 50 game winners thus far:

• Cleveland (Eastern Conference): 62-15
• LA Lakers (Western Conference): 61-16
• Boston (Eastern): 58-19
• Orlando (Eastern): 57-19
• Denver: (Western): 52-26

I point this out because the West have 6 more teams who can hit the 50 win mark before the season is out. If they all do, there would be 8 teams in the Western Conference with 50 wins or more. And that goes to show just how tough the West is... and the East are done. Those three teams will be it for the 50 or more show.

Forecast: The Mavericks need to win tonight. They are 1-2 against the Jazz this season, but the home team has been the winner in all three of those games. Mavericks are the home team tonight. Mavs win 107-91.

Home Court

Game 29: Mavericks vs. Jazz

The Mavericks are now 17-11 and are playing back-to-backs, with this being the second game. They ended up topping Portland 102-94 on Christmas day... which could mean that fatigue could be a factor for the Mavericks today. The Jazz are 17-13 coming into this game against the Mavericks and have lost their last two games and are 5-5 in their last ten (but 2-4 in their last six). The Mavericks could be facing the Jazz at the perfect time.

Dallas Mavericks Player Stats 08-09

Name	Dirk Nowitzki	Jason Terry	Josh Howard	Jason Kidd
Points Per Game	26.1	21.0	17.9	9.0
Rebounds Per Game	8.9	2.9	5.7	6.4
Assists Per Game	2.6	3.8	1.4	8.4
Blocks Per Game	0.8	0.4	0.4	0.5

Erick Dampier leads the team with 1.3 blocks per game.

Utah Jazz Player Stats 08-09

Name	Carlos Boozer*	Mehmet Okur*	Paul Milsap*	Deron Williams
Points Per Game	20.5	16.6	15.0	14.4
Rebounds Per Game	11.7	8.2	9.0	2.9
Assists Per Game	2.7	1.8	1.9	9.7
Blocks Per Game	0.3	0.6	1.3	0.2

Boozer and Okur look to be out for this game. Okur is experiencing back spasms and Boozer has a strainged left quadriceps. And to add insult to injury, Milsap is listed as questionable due to a hyperextended left knee. If you have ever hyperextended anything, you know just how bad that hurts.

More Utah Jazz Player Stats 08-09

Name	Andrei Kirilenko	Ronnie Brewer	C.J. Miles
Points Per Game	12.5	12.1	9.6
Rebounds Per Game	5.3	3.0	2.3
Assists Per Game	3.0	2.6	1.7
Blocks Per Game	1.4	0.2	0.2

Here are three more players for the Jazz, since their top three players are going to be out (more than likely, anyway).

Forecast: The Jazz are limping... it will be a Mavericks routing the Jazz, easily. I kind of feel sorry for the Jazz, in a way. Score: 112-91.

Home Court

Game 79: Dallas vs. Utah

The Dallas Mavericks (49-29) vs. The Utah Jazz (52-26)

The Mavs dominate at home and the Jazz are, well, how do you say, stinky on the road. Mavs are 32-7 at home. Jazz are 17-22 on the road. Dallas is the favorite 66% and Utah is the underdog at 34%.

The Mavericks won the first game on December 8th with the score of 125-117. Josh Howard led the way with 47 points and 10 rebounds for the Mavs. The Mavericks then went to Utah and lost 99-90 on December 26th. Dirk led the Mavs with 20 points and 9 boards. On March 3rd, the Mavs went back out to Utah and lost again with a 116-110 score, with Howard putting up 25 points, Dirk had 7 boards, and Kidd dished out 9 assists. This is the final regular season game between the two.

The only think left to point out is that the Mavericks have split the last ten and the Jazz are 8-2 over their last ten.

The Mavericks are really gelling right now. I think they are going to steamroll into the playoffs. I still think my most recient hunch will be on the money (a Mavs first round exit), however, that may change come playoff time. This team is getting better and better. Look for a killing tonight. Forecast: Mavs win - 103-97.

Home Plate

Tuesday and Wednesday

Tuesday, November 1st

NBA
Mavs (0-0) vs. Suns (0-0)
Wow-E-Wow! The season begins. This one starts in the land of the hot sun. And with Nash attack, Captain MVP, who is going to take this one? Well, for the NBA title, I don’t there is much doubt that the Spurs are just in wait for the trophy, but getting there could be fun to watch. Stranger things, am I right? So, let’s see. Suns will try to score a ton of points. Dallas is going to try to slow things down. Both went 6-2 in pre. Amare is out for 4 months. That could be the edge Dallas needs, but I am skeptical at best on this one. Amare was the Suns leading scorer last year. And he is gone. Nash is a magician and this is his former team… Dirk is looking for redemption. AJ feels confident, but he is the coach and that is his job. I… will say the intangibles go to Dallas, but I am scared to say it. Mavs take this one on a squeaker, score: 95-92

Spurs (0-0) vs. Nuggets (0-0)
Spurs: doesn’t that say it all? This team could beat any Olympic dream team any day… OK, maybe not the first dream team, but they could give them a run for their money. Spurs win this one: 1,000,000-95. (Reality, 99-92)

Wednesday, November 2nd

NBA
Mavs (1-0) vs. Jazz (0-0)
Well, the Jazz just don’t play. 2-5 in pre is definitely nothing to brag about. In a word: rebuild. For the Mavs: cakewalk. Prediction: Mavs take it, 105-89.

Rockets (0-0) vs. Kings (0-1)
This should be a good game. I like Yo-Yo. I mean, Yao-Yao. Do you get the Ming of what I am saying? I mean the meaning? This is the opener for the Rockets. The Kings second game on the road, so with the Rockets at home against a back to back Kings, it could be interesting. Intangibles definitely go to the Rockets. Well, the Sheriff (Shareef) is going to be in town, and the Kings are picked for tops in their division. I’m not sold on it yet, though. They will make the playoffs, but won’t go far in my book. Being this is the first for Houston, home court, Kings going back to back road nights, Rockets will win this one. Score: 91-87.

NHL
Stars (6-4-1) vs. Kings (8-4-0)
The Kings play hockey, too? OK, let’s do it again… the Sheriff… oh wait, the LA Kings… gotcha. Again, should be a good game between these two, if you like hockey. Not a big fan, but doing this blog, I am gaining interest… LA is 6-3 at home, Stars are 3-1 on the road. Stars are better away from here… interesting. LA and Dallas are first and second, respectfully, in their division. Stars, even with a winning record, have given up more points than scored, whereas LA is killer. They have scored 11 more goals than their opponents. So, I don’t know if I really need to dig for more stats. That tells me pretty much the goods on this game. Kings take this one. Score: 4-2.