Dirk Nowitzki, Michael Finley and Steve Nash forced the all-out tempo they love, running and shooting Dallas past Minnesota for a 2-0 lead in the first-round playoff series.
Nowitzki had 31 points and 15 rebounds, Finley had 28 points and eight rebounds, and Nash contributed 17 points and 10 assists.
The league's highest-scoring team also got a boost from its two late-season additions as Nick Van Exel scored 17 points and Raef LaFrentz had 14 points and 12 rebounds.
With so much coming from so many, Dallas was able to easily withstand Kevin Garnett's 31 points and 18 rebounds, and 25-point performances by Wally Szczerbiak and Chauncey Billups.
MINNESOTA (110)
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Garnett 9-19 13-17 31, Mitchell 1-4 0-0 2, Nesterovic 4-7 1-2 9, Billups 10-19 2-4 25, Szczerbiak 9-17 7-8 25, Smith 2-3 2-2 6, Pack 1-2 1-1 3, Trent 4-6 1-3 9, Lopez 0-2 0-0 0, Peeler 0-0 0-0 0. Totals 40-79 27-37 110.
DALLAS (122)
Najera 6-9 1-2 13, Nowitzki 9-21 9-10 31, LaFrentz 7-13 0-1 14, Finley 11-23 4-4 28, Nash 6-14 2-2 17, Eschmeyer 0-1 0-0 0, Buckner 0-1 2-2 2, Van Exel 7-12 1-2 17, Wang 0-0 0-0 0, Bradley 0-0 0-0 0. Totals 46-94 19-23 122.
Minnesota 28 31 27 24 --; 110
; Dallas 33 30 34 25 --; 122
; 3-Point Goals-- Minnesota 3-8 (Billups 3-4, Garnett 0-1, Lopez 0-1, Szczerbiak 0-2), Dallas 11-22 (Nowitzki 4-5, Nash 3-6, Finley 2-4, Van Exel 2-4, LaFrentz 0-3). Fouled out-- Nowitzki. Rebounds-- Minnesota 50 (Garnett 18), Dallas 51 (Nowitzki 15). Assists-- Minnesota 14 (Billups, Garnett 4), Dallas 23 (Nash 10). Total fouls-- Minnesota 25, Dallas 30. Technicals-- Minnesota Defensive Three Second, Garnett, Nowitzki. A-- 20,084 (19,200).
PISTONS 96, RAPTORS 91
Jerry Stackhouse scored a playoff career-high 31 points as the Detroit Pistons became the first team to take a 2-0 lead in the NBA playoffs with a 96-91 victory over Toronto on Wednesday night.
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Game 3 of the best-of-five series is Saturday in Toronto.
Jon Barr added 13 points, Cliff Robinson and Corliss Williamson scored 10 each, and Ben Wallace had 15 rebounds and seven points. Chris Childs had 22 points and 14 assists for Toronto, and Antonio Davis added 21 points.
TORONTO (91)
Peterson 4-9 1-2 9, A.Davis 8-15 5-6 21, Clark 5-10 2-2 12, A.Williams 4-15 0-2 8, Childs 9-16 0-0 22, Olajuwon 3-5 0-0 6, J.Williams 5-10 3-4 13, Jackson 0-0 0-0 0. Totals 38-80 11-16 91.
DETROIT (96)
M.Curry 1-2 2-2 4, Wallace 3-7 1-2 7, Robinson 2-10 5-6 10, Stackhouse 8-22 11-12 31, Atkins 6-13 0-1 13, Rebraca 1-2 4-4 6, Williamson 4-8 2-4 10, Jones 1-2 0-0 2, Barry 4-8 2-2 13. Totals 30-74 27-33 96.
Toronto 30 19 18 24 --; 91
; Detroit 27 19 26 24 --; 96
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; 3-Point Goals-- Toronto 4-10 (Childs 4-5, Peterson 0-2, A.Williams 0-3), Detroit 9-21 (Stackhouse 4-7, Barry 3-5, Atkins 1-3, Robinson 1-4, Williamson 0-1, Jones 0-1). Fouled out-- None. Rebounds-- Toronto 58 (A.Davis 14), Detroit 39 (Wallace 15). Assists-- Toronto 24 (Childs 14), Detroit 19 (Robinson, Atkins, Wallace 4). Total fouls-- Toronto 24, Detroit 17. Technical-- Peterson. Flagrant foul-- Childs. A-- 22,076 (22,076).
