Liriano flirts with perfection as Twins stay hot

Francisco Liriano got off to a rough start, but since throwing a no-hitter on May 3, he's turned his season around and been lights out.

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Hanson strikes out career-high 14 in Braves win

Braves starter Tommy Hanson is the first Braves starter to strike out at least 14 in a game since John Smoltz in 2005.

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Mavs beat Heat to claim first NBA championship

LeBron James struggled during "crunch time" - the last five minutes of the fourth quarter/overtime with the score within five points - during the NBA Finals. In crunch time during the 2011 NBA Finals, James did not score. Dirk Nowitzki had no trouble scoring.

The Heat made just four of their final 25 field goal attempts from 10+ feet during the fourth quarter of the 2011 NBA Finals. The Big 3 was a combined 4-17 over this stretch.

Miami scored eight transition points in Game 6 against the Mavericks, including four transition points off turnovers. The Heat's inability to create transition points off turnovers was a major factor in their demise. --On the other hand in Game 6, the Mavericks scored 20 points off 12 turnovers committed by Miami's Big 3, including 11 of their 15 transition points.

In eight minutes with LeBron James on the bench in Game 6, the Heat scored 21 points and outscored the Mavericks by 14 points. When James was on the court Miami was outscored by 24 points. It was James' worst plus/minus in a postseason game since April 24, 2008 against the Wizards when he was also minus 24.

Nowitzki was able to excel in one-on-one situations in the fourth quarter during the 2011 NBA Finals, making half of his field goal attempts on isolation and post-up plays in the final period.

Jason Terry entered Game 5 shooting under 40 percent from 15+ feet in the 2011 NBA Finals. In Games 5 and 6, Terry found his stroke, making more field goals from 15+ feet than in the previous four games combined. Terry made a series-high seven such field goals in Game 6 to close out the Heat, the most by any player in one game in the 2011 Finals.

Before Cuban bought the team in January of 2000, the Mavs had only 6 playoff appearances in 19 seasons, only four series wins and had never been to the NBA Finals. My, how much has changed: in addition to the two Finals appearances, the Mavs have now made the playoffs for 11 straight seasons - only the Spurs have a longer active streak. And now, of course, they've got their first title in franchise history.

The Mavs bench came up huge in Game 6, scoring 43 points. In fact this season, Dallas was 36-9 in games in which its bench scored at least 40 or more points. So for Dallas... the more its bench scores, the more it wins.

LeBron James averaged 26.7 points per game in the regular season. He averaged just 17.8 points per game in the 2011 NBA Finals. That discrepency between regular season scoring average and Finals scoring average was the largest in NBA history, according to the Elias Sports Bureau.

The Heat missed 13 free throws and lost by 10 points. The 13 missed free throws are the most misses from the charity stripe by a team eliminated in the NBA Finals over the last 15 seasons.

The Mavericks finished 4-0 this postseason in potential series-clinching games and have now won seven straight overall. that is one shy of the Lakers for the longest active streak.

Rick Carlisle is now 11-3 all-time in potential series-clinching games. Among coaches with at least 10 such games, his .786 win pct ranks 1st in NBA history, ahead of Tom Heinsohn, Gregg Popovich and Phil Jackson.

When you are out-numbered 3-1 in All-Stars, its imperative your supporting cast shows up... Lucky for Dirk, that's exactly what happened. In the four wins, Nowitzki's supporting cast combined to score over 75 points while shooting over 52 percent from the field. They were dangerous from downtown as well, including a 10-19 effort in Game 6

Since Mark Cuban purchased the Mavericks on January 4, 2000, the only team with a higher win percentage than his team is the Spurs (including playoffs).

From Elias: Dirk Nowitzki had 22,792 career points in the regular season entering the 2011 postseason. It's the 4th-most points by a player at the time of his 1st NBA title in NBA history, behind only Oscar Robertson (23,578), Wilt Chamberlain (23,442) and Jerry West (22,988).

It was five years ago that Jason Terry had a woeful Game 6 against the Heat in the 2006 NBA Finals, scoring 16 points on 7-of-25 shooting. But Terry helped fuel the Mavs offense this time around, hitting 19 of his 27 points in the first half.

Dwyane Wade and LeBron James combined to score 62 points in the fourth quarter of the 2011 NBA Finals. By comparison, Dirk Nowitzki scored 62 points all by himself in the fourth quarter during the Finals.

When you are outnumbered 3-1 in All-Stars, its crucial your supporting cast shows up. Luckily for Dirk Nowitzki, that's exactly what happened. In the Mavericks' four wins, Dirk's supporting cast combined to score over 75 points, shooting over 52 percent from the field.

The Heat scored 22 transition points on Sunday marking the first time in the 2011 playoffs the Heat scored at least 20 transition points in a game. The Heat are 21-2 this season (including playoffs) when they score 20+ transition points.

MIAMI -- For Dirk Nowitzki, the resume is complete. He's an NBA champion.

For LeBron James, the agonizing wait continues for at least one more year.

A season that began with Miami celebrating the signings of James, Dwyane Wade and Chris Bosh -- along with the promise of championships -- ended on the very same floor, with the Dallas Mavericks hoisting the title trophy for the first time in their franchise history after beating the Heat 105-95 on Sunday night. The Mavericks won four of the series' last five games, a turnabout that could not have been sweeter.

"I really still can't believe it," said Nowitzki, who had 21 points and took home Finals MVP honors.

He and Jason Terry, who led the Mavs with 27 points, were the two remaining players from the Dallas team that lost to Miami in the 2006 Finals.

"Tonight," Terry said, "we got vindication."

James did not. Not even close, and a year unlike any other ended they way they all have so far -- with him still waiting for an NBA title.

He scored 21 points for Miami, shook a few hands afterward, and departed before most of the Mavs tugged on their championship hats and T-shirts. Bosh had 19, Mario Chalmers 18 and Wade 17 for the Heat.

"We worked so hard and so long for it," Nowitzki said. "The team has had an unbelievable ride."

So did the Heat. Unlike Dallas, theirs wasn't a joyride.

"It goes without saying," Heat coach Erik Spoelstra said. "You're never really prepared for a moment like this. ... Neither team deserved this championship more than the other, but Dallas earned it."

When you are outnumbered 3-1 in All-Stars, its crucial your supporting cast shows up. Luckily for Dirk Nowitzki, that's exactly what happened. In the Mavericks' four wins, Dirk's supporting cast combined to score over 75 points, shooting over 52 percent from the field.

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Make no mistake: Miami lost the Finals, but the blame will be directed at James. Even he knew that after the way he left Cleveland with "The Decision" and all the animus that generated not just in Ohio but around the entire league, the only way he could silence some critics was with a title.

"It doesn't weigh on me," James said. "At all."

Still, he got even more criticism -- and a thinly veiled jab from his former owner with the Cavaliers, Dan Gilbert, who reveled in the moment on Twitter.

"Mavs NEVER stopped & now entire franchise gets rings," Gilbert wrote. "Old Lesson for all: There are NO SHORTCUTS. NONE."

And the winning owner, Mark Cuban, took what may be perceived as a jab as well: "I could care less about the Heat," he said.

Mavs coach Rick Carlisle joined a highly elite group, those with NBA titles as both a player and a head coach. Only 10 other men are on that list, including the presumably retired-for-good Phil Jackson, one of Carlisle's mentors in K.C. Jones, and Heat President Pat Riley -- who led Miami past Dallas in 2006, and was the mastermind of what the Heat did last summer by getting James, Wade and Bosh on the same team with an eye on becoming a dynasty.

It might still happen, of course.

But even after 72 wins this season, including playoffs, the Heat lost the last game. And that means this year was a disappointment -- except to just about everyone else in the NBA, or so it would seem.

It was five years ago that Jason Terry had a woeful Game 6 against the Heat in the 2006 NBA Finals, scoring 16 points on 7-of-25 shooting. But Terry helped fuel the Mavs offense this time around, hitting 19 of his 27 points in the first half.

*Heat the opponent in both gamespowered by

"This is a true team," Carlisle said. "This is an old bunch. We don't run fast or jump high. These guys had each other's backs. We played the right way. We trusted the pass. This is a phenomenal thing for the city of Dallas."

Hating the Heat became the NBA's craze this season, and the team knew it had no shortage of critics, everyone from Cleveland (where "Cavs for Mavs" shirts were popular during these Finals) to Chicago (the city James and Wade both flirted with last summer) and just about every place in between lining up to take shots at Miami.

"We could feel it," Carlisle said, noting he was repeatedly told during the Finals that "billions" of people wanted to see Dallas topple Miami.

Given their newfound popularity, meet the new America's Team.

Sorry, Cowboys -- your long-held moniker might have to be ceded to your city's NBA club. When it was over, Cuban ran onto the court to hug Carlisle, then punched the air and whooped.

"I'm so happy for him. I'm so happy for Dirk," Carlisle said.

Carlisle said Riley came down to congratulate the Mavericks after the game, showing "unbelievable class." Nowitzki and Wade exchanged texts at night's end, after Wade couldn't find him during the on-court celebration to shake his hand.

"Their time will come," Carlisle said. "But now, it's our time."

When the Mavericks took a 2-0 lead in Dallas during the '06 Finals, plans for their victory parade were announced. The Mavs didn't win another game in that series.

Now, that parade will finally happen. And when it's over, then the league's uncertainty will truly begin. Labor strife likely awaits, and although more talks geared toward movement on a new deal are scheduled for this week, both owners and players are bracing for a lockout to begin once the current collective bargaining agreement expires June 30.

Late Sunday night, the CBA was the last thing on the mind of the new champions of the NBA, whom Carlisle called "the most special team I've ever been around."

Jason Kidd, at 38 years old, got his first championship. Nowitzki got his at 32, Terry at 33. They were featured on the video screen in their building in Dallas during this series on what seemed like a constant loop, each posing with the NBA trophy and looking longingly at it, standing mere inches from it, as if to say "so close, yet so far away."

No more.

Dwyane Wade and LeBron James combined to score 62 points in the fourth quarter of the 2011 NBA Finals. By comparison, Dirk Nowitzki scored 62 points all by himself in the fourth quarter during the Finals.

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It's theirs. And for the second time, James went to the Finals, only to see the other team celebrate. San Antonio won in Cleveland in 2007, and four years later, he saw the Mavs party on his new floor.

"It was a failure in '07 when we lost to the Spurs when I was in Cleveland," James said. "It's a failure now."

Nowitzki sealed it with 2:27 left, hitting a jumper near the Miami bench to put Dallas up 99-89, and some fans actually began leaving. Nowitzki walked to the Mavs' side slowly, right fist clenched and aloft.

He knew it. Everyone did.

"We feel it," Wade said. "We'll feel it even more tomorrow."

Spoelstra implored his team to foul in the final minute, and even then, they couldn't catch the Mavericks.

"All I remember is telling those guys that they deserved it," Bosh said. "Hands down, they were the better team in this series. ... All we can do is just admit it and move forward."

What happens with the next deal may affect the Heat more than anyone. Some owners will insist on a hard cap, rolled-back salaries and, potentially, trying to bust some current deals -- which could break up the Big 3 before get another chance to win a title together.

A gloomy end to the season may bring an even gloomier offseason for Miami.

"Every situation has felt like it was an our-back-against-the-wall situation," James said Sunday morning, hours before Game 6 began. "We've been able to figure it out and find our way through and scratch our way through. This is the last test. This is the last pop quiz for us that we need to pass in order to make it all worth it."

They didn't pass.

So therefore, it wasn't all worth it.

"We give credit to the Dallas Mavericks," Wade said. "They're a helluva team. ... We ran into a team that at this time is obviously better than us."

Miami had chances to take command and wasted them all. The Heat missed 13 of their 33 free throws, let the Mavericks score 27 points off turnovers and simply could not get a rebound in the final minutes.

Nowitzki finished 9 for 27, and the Mavs still won. He was 1 for 12 in the first half, and they were still ahead, 53-51, thanks largely to Terry's 19 points on 8-of-10 shooting.

"Was he unbelievable tonight or what?" marveled Nowitzki.

Down the stretch, Terry made another contribution. He grabbed Nowitzki during a time-out, telling him, "Remember '06." The final minutes belonged to Dirk and the Mavs, and a few German flags waved in Miami's arena during the postgame celebration.

"This feeling, to be on the best team in the world, it's just undescribable," Nowitzki said.

After James got off to such a fast start, he had two points in the final 19-plus minutes of the half.

James didn't score in the second half until a layup with 1:49 remained in the third -- his first field-goal attempt since 1:05 remained in the half. Kidd made a 3-pointer late in the period, pushing the Dallas lead to 79-71, and it seemed like the only people standing in the arena were the players, referees, Cuban and a few guys around the Dallas bench.

Dallas took control in the second half after some wild back-and-forths in the opening two quarters. Miami took its last lead of the game -- the season -- just 64 seconds into the second half, lost it 16 seconds later and chased the Mavericks the rest of the way.

They never caught them.

"I can't believe the journey," said Kidd, who lost two previous Finals trips with the New Jersey Nets. "The journey, the character of my teammates telling me they wanted to get me a championship. Tonight they came out and played well. I came here twice, this being my third time so third time was the lucky charm."

It was 81-72 entering the fourth, after Ian Mahinmi made a foul-line jumper as time expired in the third, just his third basket of the entire series.

None were bigger. The Mavs could taste a title.

"We had no champions on this team," Mavs center Tyson Chandler said. "And we walked away with a team full of champions."

Of the principal characters from the 2006 series, only Cuban, Nowitzki and Terry remain from the Mavericks' side, and for them, the beginning of this championship celebration seemed sweeter than even they could have imagined. Terry won't have to get his tattoo -- the one of the NBA championship trophy -- removed, which he vowed to have done if Miami won this series. Nowitzki will never be in the conversation of 'Best player without a title' again.

James is clearly the one with that most-unwanted label now.

As the night wore on, the smell of champagne permeated from the Dallas locker room, while Miami's was cleaned and vacuumed quickly, towels picked up, shower shoes stacked neatly before each player's locker. Nearby, in the team's usual postgame interview room, the Mavericks posed with the championship trophy, whooping in joy as Miami players filed out in stunned disbelief.

The offseason started earlier than the Heat ever imagined.

"The Greater Man upstairs know when it's my time," James tweeted. "Right now isn't the time."

Game notes
Carlisle improved to 11-3 as a coach with a chance to close out an opponent. ... James got a 21-minute rest in the second quarter in real time, thanks to a midcourt dustup and the referees taking several minutes to look at replays before doling out the technicals. ... Marc Anthony sang the national anthem, then took a courtside seat near the Heat bench.

Copyright by STATS LLC and The Associated Press

 

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Dodgers' De La Rosa exits with forearm cramp

Updated: June 12, 2011, 11:51 PM ETBy Tony Jackson
ESPNLosAngeles.com
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DENVER -- Rubby De La Rosa, the Los Angeles Dodgers' highly touted rookie right-hander, left Sunday's game with the Colorado Rockies because of what later was diagnosed as a cramp in his right forearm after throwing one pitch in the bottom of the fifth inning.

For more news, notes and analysis of the Dodgers, check out Dodger Thoughts from Jon Weisman. Blog

"It was right in here," De La Rosa said, pointing at an area on the underside of his right arm, just above his wrist. De La Rosa went on to say, with Kenji Nimura interpreting, that his right index finger curled up against his palm and he was unable to straighten it.

De La Rosa said he was told by the team's medical staff that the condition resulted from dehydration and that he should drink more water when he pitches. He is expected to make his next scheduled start on Saturday night against the Houston Astros.

De La Rosa had thrown 83 pitches to that point in his second major league start, and all three of the runs he had allowed had come on a home run by Rockies right fielder Seth Smith with two outs in the first inning. Since then, De La Rosa had given up just one hit and struck out six batters.

Tony Jackson covers the Dodgers for ESPNLosAngeles.com.

Follow Tony Jackson on Twitter: @dodgerscribe

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Mavs beat Heat to claim first NBA championship

LeBron James struggled during "crunch time" - the last five minutes of the fourth quarter/overtime with the score within five points - during the NBA Finals. In crunch time during the 2011 NBA Finals, James did not score. Dirk Nowitzki had no trouble scoring.

The Heat made just four of their final 25 field goal attempts from 10+ feet during the fourth quarter of the 2011 NBA Finals. The Big 3 was a combined 4-17 over this stretch.

Miami scored eight transition points in Game 6 against the Mavericks, including four transition points off turnovers. The Heat's inability to create transition points off turnovers was a major factor in their demise. --On the other hand in Game 6, the Mavericks scored 20 points off 12 turnovers committed by Miami's Big 3, including 11 of their 15 transition points.

In eight minutes with LeBron James on the bench in Game 6, the Heat scored 21 points and outscored the Mavericks by 14 points. When James was on the court Miami was outscored by 24 points. It was James' worst plus/minus in a postseason game since April 24, 2008 against the Wizards when he was also minus 24.

Nowitzki was able to excel in one-on-one situations in the fourth quarter during the 2011 NBA Finals, making half of his field goal attempts on isolation and post-up plays in the final period.

Jason Terry entered Game 5 shooting under 40 percent from 15+ feet in the 2011 NBA Finals. In Games 5 and 6, Terry found his stroke, making more field goals from 15+ feet than in the previous four games combined. Terry made a series-high seven such field goals in Game 6 to close out the Heat, the most by any player in one game in the 2011 Finals.

Before Cuban bought the team in January of 2000, the Mavs had only 6 playoff appearances in 19 seasons, only four series wins and had never been to the NBA Finals. My, how much has changed: in addition to the two Finals appearances, the Mavs have now made the playoffs for 11 straight seasons - only the Spurs have a longer active streak. And now, of course, they've got their first title in franchise history.

The Mavs bench came up huge in Game 6, scoring 43 points. In fact this season, Dallas was 36-9 in games in which its bench scored at least 40 or more points. So for Dallas... the more its bench scores, the more it wins.

LeBron James averaged 26.7 points per game in the regular season. He averaged just 17.8 points per game in the 2011 NBA Finals. That discrepency between regular season scoring average and Finals scoring average was the largest in NBA history, according to the Elias Sports Bureau.

The Heat missed 13 free throws and lost by 10 points. The 13 missed free throws are the most misses from the charity stripe by a team eliminated in the NBA Finals over the last 15 seasons.

The Mavericks finished 4-0 this postseason in potential series-clinching games and have now won seven straight overall. that is one shy of the Lakers for the longest active streak.

Rick Carlisle is now 11-3 all-time in potential series-clinching games. Among coaches with at least 10 such games, his .786 win pct ranks 1st in NBA history, ahead of Tom Heinsohn, Gregg Popovich and Phil Jackson.

When you are out-numbered 3-1 in All-Stars, its imperative your supporting cast shows up... Lucky for Dirk, that's exactly what happened. In the four wins, Nowitzki's supporting cast combined to score over 75 points while shooting over 52 percent from the field. They were dangerous from downtown as well, including a 10-19 effort in Game 6

Since Mark Cuban purchased the Mavericks on January 4, 2000, the only team with a higher win percentage than his team is the Spurs (including playoffs).

From Elias: Dirk Nowitzki had 22,792 career points in the regular season entering the 2011 postseason. It's the 4th-most points by a player at the time of his 1st NBA title in NBA history, behind only Oscar Robertson (23,578), Wilt Chamberlain (23,442) and Jerry West (22,988).

It was five years ago that Jason Terry had a woeful Game 6 against the Heat in the 2006 NBA Finals, scoring 16 points on 7-of-25 shooting. But Terry helped fuel the Mavs offense this time around, hitting 19 of his 27 points in the first half.

Dwyane Wade and LeBron James combined to score 62 points in the fourth quarter of the 2011 NBA Finals. By comparison, Dirk Nowitzki scored 62 points all by himself in the fourth quarter during the Finals.

When you are outnumbered 3-1 in All-Stars, its crucial your supporting cast shows up. Luckily for Dirk Nowitzki, that's exactly what happened. In the Mavericks' four wins, Dirk's supporting cast combined to score over 75 points, shooting over 52 percent from the field.

The Heat scored 22 transition points on Sunday marking the first time in the 2011 playoffs the Heat scored at least 20 transition points in a game. The Heat are 21-2 this season (including playoffs) when they score 20+ transition points.

MIAMI -- For Dirk Nowitzki, the resume is complete. He's an NBA champion.

For LeBron James, the agonizing wait continues for at least one more year.

A season that began with Miami celebrating the signings of James, Dwyane Wade and Chris Bosh -- along with the promise of championships -- ended on the very same floor, with the Dallas Mavericks hoisting the title trophy for the first time in their franchise history after beating the Heat 105-95 on Sunday night. The Mavericks won four of the series' last five games, a turnabout that could not have been sweeter.

"I really still can't believe it," said Nowitzki, who had 21 points and took home Finals MVP honors.

He and Jason Terry, who led the Mavs with 27 points, were the two remaining players from the Dallas team that lost to Miami in the 2006 Finals.

"Tonight," Terry said, "we got vindication."

James did not. Not even close, and a year unlike any other ended they way they all have so far -- with him still waiting for an NBA title.

He scored 21 points for Miami, shook a few hands afterward, and departed before most of the Mavs tugged on their championship hats and T-shirts. Bosh had 19, Mario Chalmers 18 and Wade 17 for the Heat.

"We worked so hard and so long for it," Nowitzki said. "The team has had an unbelievable ride."

So did the Heat. Unlike Dallas, theirs wasn't a joyride.

"It goes without saying," Heat coach Erik Spoelstra said. "You're never really prepared for a moment like this. ... Neither team deserved this championship more than the other, but Dallas earned it."

When you are outnumbered 3-1 in All-Stars, its crucial your supporting cast shows up. Luckily for Dirk Nowitzki, that's exactly what happened. In the Mavericks' four wins, Dirk's supporting cast combined to score over 75 points, shooting over 52 percent from the field.

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Make no mistake: Miami lost the Finals, but the blame will be directed at James. Even he knew that after the way he left Cleveland with "The Decision" and all the animus that generated not just in Ohio but around the entire league, the only way he could silence some critics was with a title.

"It doesn't weigh on me," James said. "At all."

Still, he got even more criticism -- and a thinly veiled jab from his former owner with the Cavaliers, Dan Gilbert, who reveled in the moment on Twitter.

"Mavs NEVER stopped & now entire franchise gets rings," Gilbert wrote. "Old Lesson for all: There are NO SHORTCUTS. NONE."

And the winning owner, Mark Cuban, took what may be perceived as a jab as well: "I could care less about the Heat," he said.

Mavs coach Rick Carlisle joined a highly elite group, those with NBA titles as both a player and a head coach. Only 10 other men are on that list, including the presumably retired-for-good Phil Jackson, one of Carlisle's mentors in K.C. Jones, and Heat President Pat Riley -- who led Miami past Dallas in 2006, and was the mastermind of what the Heat did last summer by getting James, Wade and Bosh on the same team with an eye on becoming a dynasty.

It might still happen, of course.

But even after 72 wins this season, including playoffs, the Heat lost the last game. And that means this year was a disappointment -- except to just about everyone else in the NBA, or so it would seem.

It was five years ago that Jason Terry had a woeful Game 6 against the Heat in the 2006 NBA Finals, scoring 16 points on 7-of-25 shooting. But Terry helped fuel the Mavs offense this time around, hitting 19 of his 27 points in the first half.

*Heat the opponent in both gamespowered by

"This is a true team," Carlisle said. "This is an old bunch. We don't run fast or jump high. These guys had each other's backs. We played the right way. We trusted the pass. This is a phenomenal thing for the city of Dallas."

Hating the Heat became the NBA's craze this season, and the team knew it had no shortage of critics, everyone from Cleveland (where "Cavs for Mavs" shirts were popular during these Finals) to Chicago (the city James and Wade both flirted with last summer) and just about every place in between lining up to take shots at Miami.

"We could feel it," Carlisle said, noting he was repeatedly told during the Finals that "billions" of people wanted to see Dallas topple Miami.

Given their newfound popularity, meet the new America's Team.

Sorry, Cowboys -- your long-held moniker might have to be ceded to your city's NBA club. When it was over, Cuban ran onto the court to hug Carlisle, then punched the air and whooped.

"I'm so happy for him. I'm so happy for Dirk," Carlisle said.

Carlisle said Riley came down to congratulate the Mavericks after the game, showing "unbelievable class." Nowitzki and Wade exchanged texts at night's end, after Wade couldn't find him during the on-court celebration to shake his hand.

"Their time will come," Carlisle said. "But now, it's our time."

When the Mavericks took a 2-0 lead in Dallas during the '06 Finals, plans for their victory parade were announced. The Mavs didn't win another game in that series.

Now, that parade will finally happen. And when it's over, then the league's uncertainty will truly begin. Labor strife likely awaits, and although more talks geared toward movement on a new deal are scheduled for this week, both owners and players are bracing for a lockout to begin once the current collective bargaining agreement expires June 30.

Late Sunday night, the CBA was the last thing on the mind of the new champions of the NBA, whom Carlisle called "the most special team I've ever been around."

Jason Kidd, at 38 years old, got his first championship. Nowitzki got his at 32, Terry at 33. They were featured on the video screen in their building in Dallas during this series on what seemed like a constant loop, each posing with the NBA trophy and looking longingly at it, standing mere inches from it, as if to say "so close, yet so far away."

No more.

Dwyane Wade and LeBron James combined to score 62 points in the fourth quarter of the 2011 NBA Finals. By comparison, Dirk Nowitzki scored 62 points all by himself in the fourth quarter during the Finals.

powered by

It's theirs. And for the second time, James went to the Finals, only to see the other team celebrate. San Antonio won in Cleveland in 2007, and four years later, he saw the Mavs party on his new floor.

"It was a failure in '07 when we lost to the Spurs when I was in Cleveland," James said. "It's a failure now."

Nowitzki sealed it with 2:27 left, hitting a jumper near the Miami bench to put Dallas up 99-89, and some fans actually began leaving. Nowitzki walked to the Mavs' side slowly, right fist clenched and aloft.

He knew it. Everyone did.

"We feel it," Wade said. "We'll feel it even more tomorrow."

Spoelstra implored his team to foul in the final minute, and even then, they couldn't catch the Mavericks.

"All I remember is telling those guys that they deserved it," Bosh said. "Hands down, they were the better team in this series. ... All we can do is just admit it and move forward."

What happens with the next deal may affect the Heat more than anyone. Some owners will insist on a hard cap, rolled-back salaries and, potentially, trying to bust some current deals -- which could break up the Big 3 before get another chance to win a title together.

A gloomy end to the season may bring an even gloomier offseason for Miami.

"Every situation has felt like it was an our-back-against-the-wall situation," James said Sunday morning, hours before Game 6 began. "We've been able to figure it out and find our way through and scratch our way through. This is the last test. This is the last pop quiz for us that we need to pass in order to make it all worth it."

They didn't pass.

So therefore, it wasn't all worth it.

"We give credit to the Dallas Mavericks," Wade said. "They're a helluva team. ... We ran into a team that at this time is obviously better than us."

Miami had chances to take command and wasted them all. The Heat missed 13 of their 33 free throws, let the Mavericks score 27 points off turnovers and simply could not get a rebound in the final minutes.

Nowitzki finished 9 for 27, and the Mavs still won. He was 1 for 12 in the first half, and they were still ahead, 53-51, thanks largely to Terry's 19 points on 8-of-10 shooting.

"Was he unbelievable tonight or what?" marveled Nowitzki.

Down the stretch, Terry made another contribution. He grabbed Nowitzki during a time-out, telling him, "Remember '06." The final minutes belonged to Dirk and the Mavs, and a few German flags waved in Miami's arena during the postgame celebration.

"This feeling, to be on the best team in the world, it's just undescribable," Nowitzki said.

After James got off to such a fast start, he had two points in the final 19-plus minutes of the half.

James didn't score in the second half until a layup with 1:49 remained in the third -- his first field-goal attempt since 1:05 remained in the half. Kidd made a 3-pointer late in the period, pushing the Dallas lead to 79-71, and it seemed like the only people standing in the arena were the players, referees, Cuban and a few guys around the Dallas bench.

Dallas took control in the second half after some wild back-and-forths in the opening two quarters. Miami took its last lead of the game -- the season -- just 64 seconds into the second half, lost it 16 seconds later and chased the Mavericks the rest of the way.

They never caught them.

"I can't believe the journey," said Kidd, who lost two previous Finals trips with the New Jersey Nets. "The journey, the character of my teammates telling me they wanted to get me a championship. Tonight they came out and played well. I came here twice, this being my third time so third time was the lucky charm."

It was 81-72 entering the fourth, after Ian Mahinmi made a foul-line jumper as time expired in the third, just his third basket of the entire series.

None were bigger. The Mavs could taste a title.

"We had no champions on this team," Mavs center Tyson Chandler said. "And we walked away with a team full of champions."

Of the principal characters from the 2006 series, only Cuban, Nowitzki and Terry remain from the Mavericks' side, and for them, the beginning of this championship celebration seemed sweeter than even they could have imagined. Terry won't have to get his tattoo -- the one of the NBA championship trophy -- removed, which he vowed to have done if Miami won this series. Nowitzki will never be in the conversation of 'Best player without a title' again.

James is clearly the one with that most-unwanted label now.

As the night wore on, the smell of champagne permeated from the Dallas locker room, while Miami's was cleaned and vacuumed quickly, towels picked up, shower shoes stacked neatly before each player's locker. Nearby, in the team's usual postgame interview room, the Mavericks posed with the championship trophy, whooping in joy as Miami players filed out in stunned disbelief.

The offseason started earlier than the Heat ever imagined.

"The Greater Man upstairs know when it's my time," James tweeted. "Right now isn't the time."

Game notes
Carlisle improved to 11-3 as a coach with a chance to close out an opponent. ... James got a 21-minute rest in the second quarter in real time, thanks to a midcourt dustup and the referees taking several minutes to look at replays before doling out the technicals. ... Marc Anthony sang the national anthem, then took a courtside seat near the Heat bench.

Copyright by STATS LLC and The Associated Press

 

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Kiffin appears at NCAA hearing over Tennessee

INDIANAPOLIS -- Former Tennessee coaches Bruce Pearl and Lane Kiffin finally got to explain themselves in front of the NCAA.

All they can do now is wait to see if it did any good.

Kiffin spent more than four hours answering questions in front of the infractions committee Saturday, then was followed by Pearl, who spent nearly five hours in front of the committee. School officials are hoping the daylong closed-door hearing marks the beginning of the end of a 22-month investigation that rocked the Volunteers' football and men's basketball programs and tarnished Tennessee's reputation.

"The hardest part is just being here," Pearl said. "This was not something I was looking forward to."

The committee is expected to make a ruling within eight to 12 weeks. That's when the Volunteers' will learn their punishment.

Tennessee faces a dozen major rules violations in the two high-profile sports including accusations that both coaches committed recruiting infractions and that both also failed to promote an atmosphere of compliance within those programs.

Pearl, the former Volunteers men's basketball coach, also was charged with unethical conduct after misleading NCAA investigators during an interview last June when he was asked about hosting high school juniors at a cookout at his house on Sept. 20, 2008 and phoning John Craft, father of recruit Aaron Craft, in an effort to influence Craft's statement to investigators about the cookout.

Craft just completed his freshman season at Ohio State, whose football program is also under NCAA investigation.

On Sept. 10, in a tearful news conference, Pearl acknowledged he had provided false information to the investigators.

That part was not contested Saturday, but there was plenty of discussion on other issues -- and lots of people trying to help Tennessee plead for leniency.

Those attending included, Kiffin, now the Southern California football coach; Pearl, who was fired after last season by Tennessee; Mike Hamilton, the outgoing athletic director; SEC commissioner Mike Slive; Derek Dooley, Tennessee's new football coach; and Cuonzo Martin, the Vols new men's basketball coach. Martin and Dooley are not implicated in the charges.

The school's contingent was so large it forced the NCAA to move its hearing into a bigger conference room, and the hearing was held about five blocks from the home stadium of one of Tennessee's most famous alums -- four-time NFL MVP Peyton Manning.

"We are glad we had the opportunity to present our case," university chancellor Jimmy Cheek said in a statement. "We feel it was a fair hearing and we look forward to the resolution of this matter."

Kiffin was accompanied at the hearing by USC athletic director Pat Haden, who made his second appearance in front of an NCAA committee in Indy this year. He also attended January's appeals hearing for USC, which this week was stripped of its 2004 national title by the Bowl Championship Series for NCAA violations.

Tennessee has already taken some steps in hopes of avoiding a punishment that would be that drastic.

It reduced Pearl's salary by $1.5 million last season and banned him from off-campus recruiting for one year. The SEC also suspended Pearl for eight conference games. In March, Pearl was fired.

The school also lowered the salary for each of Pearl's three assistants, who were accused of not providing "complete" information about the cookout.

Pearl and two of his assistants, Tony Jones and Steve Forbes also are accused of making 96 impermissible phone calls to 12 recruits or relatives between Aug. 1, 2007, and July 29, 2009, and the school has been charged with failure to monitor the coaching staff's contacts.

Kiffin and his assistants were accused of making improper calls to recruits, too, after Tennessee officials warned them against it. He made those calls just days before taking the Southern California job in January 2010.

In addition, Kiffin and recruiting intern Steve Rubio are accused of visiting a Florida high school on Oct. 12, 2009, even though Rubio was not permitted to make on-campus visits.

Kiffin's failure to monitor charge stems from trips taken by members of the school's athletics hostess program to visit recruits.

Both coaches attended the first 40 minutes of the closed-door hearing, which were set aside for opening statements.

Kiffin then remained in the room, while Pearl and his former assistants left en masse. Pearl wandered down to the hotel lobby, waiting there until Kiffin finished more than four hours later. It took so long the lunch break was delayed twice.

Kiffin would not discuss the specifics of what took place inside the room.

Pearl was the first person back when the hearing resumed after a one-hour break. He spent most of the next five hours back inside the room.

When things finally wrapped up, more than 10½ hours after they started, the emotions were mixed.

"It's a very thorough process and I'm glad it's over," Kiffin said before leaving the downtown Indianapolis hotel for a football camp at Southern Cal. "It was a lot shorter than the last one I sat through, three days of USC's, and I'm happy it's over."

The fallout from the scandal may not be, though.

Hamilton announced this week he would resign at the end of the month. Tennessee women's athletics director Joan Cronan, also in Indy, will serve as interim vice chancellor and director of athletics until Hamilton's replacement is picked.

Sometime in August or September, the Volunteers should learn their fate.

"It's not over because we've got to wait 45 or 60 days," Pearl said.

And for Pearl, who wore an orange and white tie and orange suspenders to the hearing, there was no sense of relief.

"Not really because we paid a very heavy price, all of us here have -- my staff and the University of Tennessee," he said. "So there's not much relief."

Copyright 2011 by The Associated Press

 

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Damon, Longoria HRs lead Rays past Orioles

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BALTIMORE -- Johnny Damon hit a familiar brand of home run to give Tampa Bay a lead it would never lose.

Seven innings later, Evan Longoria sealed the victory with a rare kind of trip around the bases. Damon had his 27th career leadoff blast, Longoria hit an inside-the-park homer and three RBIs, and the Rays cruised past the Baltimore Orioles 9-6 Sunday. Justin Ruggiano had three hits for the Rays, who won two of three from Baltimore to clinch their first winning road trip of 11 or more games since 2003. Tampa Bay is 6-4 on a four-city, 11-game journey that concludes with a makeup game in Detroit on Monday. Damon had two hits and scored twice. The 37-year-old has reached base in a career-best 37 consecutive games, tying the club record set by Ben Grieve in 2001. "I'm in a position where I'm comfortable," Damon said. "For a while, we were test-driving a lot of leadoff hitters. I think this could be our best situation with me at the top and (Ben Zobrist) in the two hole." Longoria's first career inside-the-park homer came in the eighth with a man on and put Tampa Bay up 9-5. His liner to center curled past a hard-charging Adam Jones, and the ball rolled to the wall as Longoria circled the bases. "I had a shot at it. I just missed the ball," Jones said. Longoria reached the plate well ahead of the final relay throw. It was the third inside-the-park homer in the 20-year history of Camden Yards; Butch Davis did it for Texas in 1993 and Detroit's Shane Halter hit one in 2003. "You hit balls like that in batting practice all the time, where it comes off the bat and has that knuckle action," Longoria said. "But it doesn't happen too often in games." It did this time, and the hit was huge. "I saw he had his glove up so I thought he was going to catch the ball," Longoria said. "As soon as I saw it take that left turn, I put my head down. As soon as I went around second I knew I was going home. I was gassed by the time I got around third, but I was able to keep chugging and beat the throw." Asked to recall the last time he hit an inside-the-park homer, Longoria replied, "I haven't had one since Little League when they didn't have fences." Tampa Bay starter Wade Davis (5-5) allowed five runs, four earned, and eight hits in six-plus innings. He's 4-0 lifetime in Baltimore and 2-2 overall against the Orioles this season. J.P. Howell got three outs for his first save. Kyle Farnsworth was not available because of the flu. Jones, Vladimir Guerrero and Luke Scott hit solo homers for Baltimore. Fifteen of the Orioles' last 21 home runs have been solo shots. Making his third start since returning from the disabled list with an oblique injury, Brian Matusz (1-1) gave up four runs, five hits and four walks in 1 1/3 innings. Riding a seven-game winning streak that started last August, the left-hander retired only three of the 13 batters he faced. "From the get-go I didn't get a good feel, (not even) warming up in the bullpen," Matusz said. "It was just one of those days where you've got to be able to battle without your good stuff. They were able to find some holes and get some things going early, and I just wasn't able to get on track today." The Rays batted around in the first inning, getting four hits and stealing four bases, yet they scored only three runs. After Damon hit his eighth homer, Zobrist and Ruggiano singled before Longoria hit a sacrifice fly. Two batters later, Sean Rodriguez got an RBI when Mark Reynolds misplayed his grounder to third. Orioles manager Buck Showalter was more livid at Matusz about the stolen bases than the hits he yielded. "It's been a challenge for him," Showalter said about Matusz's inability to hold runners. "Maybe we'll be able to get his attention a little bit more." Jones and Guerrero connected in succession in the bottom half, the second time this season the Orioles hit back-to-back homers. The only out Matusz got in the second inning came when Damon was caught stealing on a questionable call. Tampa Bay then loaded the bases before Showalter summoned Alfredo Simon, who gave up a sacrifice fly to B.J. Upton. A double by Casey Kotchman and an RBI single by Damon made it 5-2 in the third. Baltimore got an unearned run in the bottom half, but Reynolds' second error of the game and 14th of the season provided Tampa Bay with two unearned runs in the seventh for a 7-3 lead. In the Baltimore half, after singles by Ryan Adams and Craig Tatum chased Davis, Nick Markakis and Jones hit run-scoring groundouts. Game notes
Reynolds left in the seventh with a bruised forearm after being struck with a ball hit by Rodriguez in the fifth inning. ... Activated from the disabled list after Saturday's game, Rays shortstop Elliott Johnson (knee sprain) went 0 for 3 with a walk. ... The season series is tied at 6. Copyright by STATS LLC and The Associated Press

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