May 10, 2009 (Part 3); Anthony drains 3-ball, puts Nuggets up 3-0

Antoine Wright thought he fouled Carmelo Anthony, but he didn't.

Instead, Anthony was left open for a three-point shot along the right wing, which made its way in with a second left in the final quarter, giving the Nuggets a 106-105 victory in Game 3 over the Dallas Mavericks, breaking the hearts of every Mavs' fans inside the AmericamnAirlines Center.

The Nuggets now lead their best-of-seven series 3 games to nil, one game away from going to the West Finals to face the winner of the Lakers-Rockets series.

The game all in all had 61 fouls called, making the game one of the most physical games ever.

Chauncey Billups led the way for the Nuggets, as he sizzled with 32 points, with 23 of those coming from the 2nd half. He also had 3 rebounds and 3 assists. Carmelo Anthony was not far behind, scoring 31 points, including the game-winning three-point basket, along with 8 rebounds and 2 assists. J.R. Smith provided the spark off the bench, scoring 10 points and adding 6 boards and 2 assists.

The Mavs on the other hand were led by Dirk Nowitzki with the game-high 33 points, with 16 rebounds and 2 assists. Jason Terry had 17 points and 4 boards off the bench. Brandon Bass added 16 bench points and 5 rebounds. Josh Howard connected with 14 points while Jason Kidd poured in 13 points and 5 dimes.

After the game, tempers flared as Antoine Wright, Josh Howard and Mavs owner Mark Cuban traded harsh words with some Nuggets players. Kenyon Martin from the Nuggets told everyone to cool off, and so it is. Cooler heads prevail as all the players marched on to their locker rooms.

Before the game started, a moment of silence was given to one of the premier coaches in league's history, Chuck Daly, who passed away earlier today at the age of 78 due to cancer.

Game 4 of this series will be played on Tuesday, May 12 at 9:30 AM still from Dallas.

Game 3
Denver 106
Dallas 105
AmericanAirlines Center, Dallas, Texas
DEN: Chauncey Billups- 32 pts, 3 rebs, 3 assts.
DAL: Dirk Nowitzki- 33 pts, 16 rebs, 2 assts.
Nuggets lead series 3-0
Game 4 on Tuesday, May 12 at 9:30 AM from the AmericanAirlines Center in Dallas.

The game between Cleveland and Atlanta is up next!

The Wizard was here... :)