Dallas Mavericks Throwback: Jason Terry Comes Up Big Against San Antonio

The struggling Dallas Mavericks were just a few months into their title defense in January 2012 and things were not going so well. After blowing up the team in hopes of signing a big-time free agent, they were low on talent.

The front office decided to bring in the reigning Sixth Man of the Year, Lamar Odom, in an attempt to pump the offense but his tenure with the Mavs was a disaster on and off the court.

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The Mavs players and fans were able to put all that to the side for one night in January. It was set up to be just another game against the San Antonio Spurs but so many twists occurred throughout the game and into OT that it quickly turned into a game for fans to remember.

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The Mavs were just getting Dirk Nowitzki back from a short absence due to knee issues so the fans were ready to see him back, especially against a rival. However, Nowitzki struggled early on and those struggles continued throughout the night as he only scored 10 points on 5-of-14 shooting.

The Mavs were able to take control of the game early on in the second quarter thanks to a 14-2 run and they eventually took a 51-40 lead into the half. Things really began to get interesting at the 9:00 mark in the fourth quarter. The Mavs squandered their double-digit lead that they had owned for the second and third quarters while the Spurs capitalized and took the lead.

It didn’t get any better for the Mavs as the Spurs pushed the lead to seven with about three and a half minutes left. For the next two minutes, both teams went scoreless and the Mavs found themselves in serious danger of losing a game that they had controlled just a quarter before.

Jason Terry and Rodrigue Beaubois were instrumental in a late 9-2 run, capped off by an incredible jumper by Terry that tied it up with 0.5 seconds left. Then disaster struck yet again as Danny Green received the ball on the inbounds pass and proceeded to sink a rushed shot at the buzzer.

That wasn’t the end of the game though. Upon further review, the ball was still resting on Green’s fingertips as the backboard lights lit up. Therefore, the game transitioned to overtime where Dirk Nowitzki hit a few buckets and Jason Terry finished San Antonio off. The Mavs defeated the Spurs 101-100 during a night full of interesting events for both teams.

Perhaps the biggest story of the night for the Mavs was Jason Terry. He had one of his greatest games in blue and white while scoring 34 points and dishing out four assists on his way to becoming a hero late in the game. He didn’t just score one late basket though.

At the end of regulation and overtime, he finished the game off himself and stepped up when other Mavs players, like Nowitzki were not on their game.

Overall, this is not a game that too many people talk about nowadays due to the the fact that the season ended on a sour note, but it was honestly one of the best Mavs games I’ve seen in recent years and the thing that made it sweeter for fans was the fact that it was against a rival, like the Spurs.

Rivalry games always make things more intense and, in this case, a rivalry created a great ending for a game that was being broadcasted on national television. It’s a shame that it’s overlooked but some fans will always remember the night that Jason Terry led the Mavs to a big win over the Spurs.

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