Dirk Nowitzki Powers Dallas to Beat Lakers In Game 1 of Semis Playoffs Action

The Dallas Mavericks have beaten the Los Angeles Lakers in the Game 1 of their best of 7 Western Conference semi-finals series. The score was 96-94. Dirk Nowitzki made crucial baskets. He scored 28 points. The game went down to one last possession for the Lakers but Kobe and Pau failed to capitalize as a result Dallas beat them in their home court. The Mavericks have just completed the circle of upsets in the NBA today. Almost all of the home teams these past two days have lost to away teams, i.e. Memphis defeated Oklahoma, Atlanta defeated Chicago and Dallas defeated Los Angeles.

This win of Dallas has ended their 10 game losing record against the Los Angeles Lakers every time they meet in the Playoffs. Leading by one in the last 20 seconds of the game, Dallas' ace player was fouled by Pau Gasol. Nowitzki converted his two charities to seal the win for the Mavs.

Kobe Bryant, who still have an outside shot for the MVP honors. He scored well in this game. He had 39 big points. It's the biggest output of any player since the start of the 2011 playoffs. Kobe has scored at least 30 points in his 5 straight playoff games. Shaquille O'Neal, George Mikan, and Elgin Baylor are the only other players who accomplished such a peat.

This lost is not a cause for alarm for the Lakers. They've also lost to the Hornets in the first game of their first round series and they bounced back in the next remaining games. The Lakers are resilient and I believe that they can do the same against the Mavericks who just came back from a huge deficit to beat the Lakers.

Here's the replay video highlights of the Mavericks vs. Lakers game 1 semi-finals 2011 playoff series.