DALLAS - For much of the playoffs, the Nuggets had gotten away with not being their best in one area or another, instead relying on grit to get them through. More often than not, grit was enough.
But Monday night, searching for ways to win in the midst of rough-around-the-edges play gave way to not making enough plays to win. The fourth quarter, which had been so good to the team during this series, finally turned on them. Defensively, the Nuggets had no answer for Dallas forward Dirk Nowitzki. He hurt the Nuggets with a wide array of shots and made free throws to seal the victory. Rebounding went the Mavericks' way. Not much went right for the road team.
Nuggets coach George Karl lamented the team's defensive effort.
"In general it was a very fast game for a playoff game," Karl said. "They've got great offensive players. We have to play fast but also play smart. I don't know if we were committed to playing the smart possession as well as we needed to win in Dallas on the road against a good team.
"We didn't seem to get a defensive feel for (Nowitzki) or the team. My only disappointment was we didn't try to win it with our defense. We tried to win it with our offense."
Nowitzki's 44 points and 13 rebounds were punctuated by the manner in which they came. The big man scored 19 points in the fourth quarter as the Nuggets , for the first time this series, were unable to shut him down when it mattered most.
And it wasn't just Nowitzki.
The Mavericks generally got stronger as the game wore on. They scored 23, 30, 32 and in the fourth quarter went for 34 points. They shot 61 percent from the field and made 18-of-19 free throws in the final period. Dallas scored nine points in the last 1:48; Nowitzki had six of them.
"Dirk had a hot hand," guard Chauncey Billups said. "He made a lot of tough shots."
According to Karl, the Mavericks simply beat the Nuggets at their own game.
"They started to play like we play," Karl said. "They ran and wanted the crowd to be in the building and they got some good play off their bench. (Brandon) Bass gave them some minutes, the little kid (Jose Barea) came in and played well for them."
On the flip side, the Nuggets struggled to get anything done. Carmelo Anthony finished with a career playoff-high 41 points and 11 rebounds, but he went just 2-for-7 from the field in the fourth quarter. The Nuggets also made just 2-of-7 shots from 3-point range and committed 11 fouls.
On Nowitzki, Karl gushed.
"He's a great player," Karl said. "Tonight it looked like he had a mission - pretty serious about every possession and every touch he got. It was an offensive game all night long and I'm sure that was very entertaining, but I don't think it helps us win games in this building without Chris Andersen."
Chris Dempsey: 303-954-1279 or cdempsey@denverpost.com ------------- Melo's markers
Carmelo Anthony's 41 points in Game 4 on Monday were a career playoff high in a postseason that has been his best.
His 2009 postseason stats:
....FG....3PT....FT........
vs. Dallas....Min....M-A....M-A....M-A....O-A....Ast....TO....Pts....
Game 4....43....15-29....2-5....9-11....3-11....3....2....41....
Game 3....42....9-24....2-2....11-14....3-8....2....2....31....
Game 2....42....8-21....1-8....8-9....1-5....5....1....25....
Game 1....29....7-10....2-3....7-7....1-5....4....4....23....
vs. N. Orleans....36.6.....469.....462.....786....1.6-6.0....5.2....2.0....24.0....
