Two bugaboos that almost cost the Mavericks this night were turnovers-17-and the number of offensive rebounds the Pistons made-17. Each time it appeared that Dallas could pull away with a ten point lead Detroit kept pushing back with timely shots by Josh Smith (25 points), Greg Monroe (20 points), or even Brandon Jennings from the three.
Dallas exploded for seven goals as no less than six players had multiple points in this matchup. In improving their record to 23-20-8 Jamie Benn got the fun started at 7:09 with his 100th career goal and 18 of the season. Tyler Seguin and Valeri Nichushkin each got assists (25th and 14th) for an early 1-0 lead.
The rest of the world remembers a 75 or 74 yard reversal of a cut and run by Marcus Allen that went for a touchdown as the Raiders celebrated their third overall Super Bowl win, second under Tom Flores and 1st and only for Los Angeles with a 38-9 branding of the hogs and Team Riggins. An absolute blowout of a game.
With the victory the Dallas Stars improved to 22-20-8 as the Wild fell to 27-20-5. This was as complete a game as the Dallas Stars have played. Lindy Ruff when asked about the energy and emotion offered the following.
Portlands starting five were hitting on all cylinders from the very beginning as they outscored Dallas 91-43. In the paint the Trail Blazers outscored the Mavs 60-38. Portland also outrebounded to the tune of 55-30. Did we mention fast break points? Advantage: Trail Blazers 31-12.
Sunday, January 26, 2014 at 10:52PM