<div class="quote_poster">Quote:</div><div class="quote_post">MEMPHIS -- Mavericks assistant Joe Prunty wanted to make something clear after a lengthy chat on the subject. "We're not the ones talking sweep," he reminded Sunday afternoon. The opportunity to bounce the Memphis Grizzlies out of the playoffs after only four games is there tonight at FedEx Forum, and the Mavs know that better than anyone. But finishing off the first four-game sweep in franchise history doesn't mean anything in itself. The Mavs are looking at it as just winning one game. "This is a great opportunity for us," Darrell Armstrong said. "Hopefully, we can win [tonight] and get some rest, and hopefully San Antonio and Sacramento keep knocking each other's heads off." The Spurs-Kings winner is next if the Mavs advance. No team in league history has won a series after being down 3-0, and Memphis is 0-11 all-time in the playoffs. "You don't ever want to drag out a series and give the other team life and confidence," said Dirk Nowitzki, averaging 32.7 points and 8.0 rebounds in the series. "Hopefully, we come out the right way. I think the coaching staff will make some adjustments and get us right." Prunty is in his first year on Avery Johnson's staff but isn't a stranger to the playoffs. He spent the previous nine years with San Antonio and took part in 22 playoff series. Though the Spurs won three titles during Prunty's stay, San Antonio swept only three opponents. Finishing early means extra rest for aching bodies and, maybe more importantly, weary minds. "When you finally close out a series at any point, whether it's 4-0 or 4-3," Prunty said, "you're just feeling like, 'Man, I don't want to see those guys again.' There's a fine line between winning and losing any game. If Dirk doesn't hit that shot..." Nowitzki's game-saving 3-pointer late in the fourth quarter spurred the 94-89 overtime victory that moved the Mavs to the brink of the Western Conference semifinals. Going through a series unscathed isn't a common experience for the Mavs. Nowitzki and Adrian Griffin are the only two to experience the winning end of a sweep with the Mavs, when they eliminated Minnesota 3-0 in 2002. That was before the current best-of-seven format for the first round was adopted in 2003. "It's easier to beat a team three times than four times in a row, especially when you are the higher seed," Nowitzki said. "If you need to win three, you only need to win one on the road and now you need to win two in a row on the road. And that's not easy in the playoffs." The playoffs never are. Despite the commanding lead, the Mavs haven't exactly rolled over Memphis. The Grizzlies are shooting better (46.2 percent to 43.9) in the series. But the Mavs own a 127-105 rebounding advantage, including a 43-25 edge on the offensive boards, which has led to a 51-30 difference in second-chance points. More than stats, however, Johnson boiled the series down to confidence and composure. The Mavs, he said, have played with plenty of both. "A lot of that starts with what I do," Johnson said. "There were times last year I would get so crazy and so animated, so I've tried to keep my composure a little bit. I'm not all the way there yet. I'm not an A-plus there. I'm probably a C-minus."</div> Source
