Dirk Nowitzki versus Kevin Durant lived up to the billing in Game One of the Western Conference Finals between the Dallas Mavericks and Oklahoma City Thunder. However, the Mavericks’ All-Star power forward was just that much better as Dallas pulled out the 121-112 victory at home to kick off the series.

Nowitzki got things rolling early by putting his head down and driving to the basket, then set up shop at the free throw line before finishing with 48 points (topping Durant’s 40) on a ridiculous 80 percent shooting from the floor.

"[Dirk was] tremendous and he saw matchups that he liked and he was knocking down his shots early," Mavericks’ sixth man Jason Terry said. "And then you try to get aggressive defensively on him and you put him on the free throw line."

One of the most efficient scorers in basketball, Nowitzki outdid himself against the Thunder. The former MVP made 12 of 15 baskets the field, set an NBA playoff-record by making 24 free throw attempts without a miss and his 48 points is a 2011 layoff-high - just two off of his career-postseason high.

Oh, and Nowitzki also tacked on six rebounds, four assists and a game-high four blocks just for good measure.

"Which records did he set? He played great, obviously," Mavericks’ coach Rick Carlisle said. "We had a long layoff, but guys worked hard during that period. Dirk spent a lot of time working on his game, keeping himself ready. He got it going early, and I thought he did a good job of mixing in drives with jump shots, and getting to the bonus was big because that helped him get to the free throw line when we had a matchup advantage there."

The Mavericks’ head coach said after the contest he couldn’t really put Nowitzki’s amazing night in perspective.

That makes two of us.

"That’s part of his greatness," Carlisle reflected after the game.

While Game One was certainly a game for the ages, those thinking Nowitzki’s play this postseason has come out of left field better check the stats.

While the Mavericks have dealt with their share of playoff failures since advancing to the NBA Finals in the 2005-2006 season, Nowitzki’s game has remained at the same elite level. Nowitzki doesn’t just carry over his play from the regular season into the playoffs, he expands on it.

When you consider Nowitzki is one of just four players in NBA history to have playoff averages of over 25 points and 10 rebounds a game, his overall body of postseason work unequivocally proves this year is no aberration. Pretending Nowitzki has somehow stepped up his game to new heights, thus the Mavs are finally getting over the hump, is a gross over-exaggeration.

In the words of L.L. Cool J, "Don’t call it a comeback, [Dirk's] been here for years!"

"He’s been doing it for many years against a lot of great players," Thunder coach Scott Brooks said. "He had a good rhythm and got off to a good start… He’s a great player and he’s one of the best I’ve ever seen at that position offensively. He scores just a variety of shots, and a lot of shots you don’t think he has a chance to make it but he does."

Never one to bask in the spotlight, Nowitzki continued to preach Dallas is the sum of its parts and this team is going to need everybody playing at a high level in order to reach their goal of an NBA Championship.

"We’re a good team if everybody is playing well and attacking from all angles we’re tough to beat and that’s how we’ve been winning all season long," Nowitzki said. "We’ve got to play solid defense and rebound the ball and offensively share the ball, make shots and play off each other."

The Mavericks find themselves in the best position to get back to the NBA Finals in years, but this "new" Nowitzki looks a lot like the same old Dirk that has been dominating postseason play for over a decade.

Barea, Bench Wreak Havoc Again

For the second straight contest, J.J. Barea and Jason Terry were among the top three Mavericks in scoring. Also, yet again, Barea scored over 20 points as he weaved in and out of defenders en route to the basket time and time again Tuesday night.

{AUTHOR_BOX}"I’ve been doing that all my life," Barea said of his penchant to get into the paint. "I love to get in the lane and with the shooter’s we’ve got, coach is putting me in good situations with Dirk or another big guy setting the screen and I’m just attacking.  It’s working out for us. Hopefully it keeps working out."

Barea did the majority of his damage in the fourth quarter, scoring 12 straight points for Dallas, mixing a quick first step with some deadly shooting from behind the arc to completely keep the Thunder defense off balance.

"He’s feisty," Terry said. "When J.J. comes in and he’s aggressive and assertive with his penetration then it’s tough for a defense. It’s something he’s going to have to continue to do. Teams are going to start paying more and more attention to him, but he did a great job. He made great decisions."

Terry scored 24 points of his own for Dallas and he fulfilled his quest of outscoring the Thunder bench (just 22 points) by himself for the contest. In total, the Mavs’ reserves more than doubled OKC’s backups 53-22.

Nowitzki was a monster in Game One, but he needed a little help from his friends off the bench to secure a 1-0 series lead Tuesday night.

"Our bench has been great for us all season long," Nowitzki said, "and they came through tonight."

Even with Peja Stojakovic struggling to find the range (1-8 from the field, including just 1-6 from deep), Barea and Terry took over off the pine and Dallas held home court in Game One.

This Mavericks team is clicking on all cylinders offensively right now, and it will be interesting to see what type of adjustments the Thunder make on the defensive end heading into Game Two.

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