The Mavericks made a late comeback in Game 4, defeating the Thunder 112-105 in overtime on Monday Night. Dirk Nowitzki scored 40 points, pulling his team out of a 15 point hole with less than 5 minutes in regulation. Dallas now leads the best-of-seven series 3-1.

Devastating is the best word to describe this loss for Oklahoma City. How do you outrebound your opponent 55 to 33 and lose? How do you blow a 15 point lead at home with less than 5 minutes left in regulation? It will be close to impossible for OKC to come back from 3-1. Especially after the meltdown that took place late in Game 4.

The one question that has an answer is this. How do you stop Dirk Nowitzki? When he's on, you can't. Simple as that. The Thunder showed no poise late, and when Nowitzki took over the Mavericks could smell blood. Look at his series numbers after 4 games in the Western Conference Finals. 33.8 PPG, 56.2 FG pct, 96.2 FT pct, 5.0 RPG. These are ghastly numbers if you're a Thunder fan. Here is more of the Game 4 recap from the AP and espn.com.

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Dirk Nowitzki scored 40 points, Jason Kidd hit the go-ahead 3-pointer with 40 seconds left in overtime and the Dallas Mavericks overcame a 15-point deficit in the final 5 minutes of regulation to stun the Oklahoma City Thunder 112-105 on Monday night and take a 3-1 lead in the Western Conference finals.

Dallas didn't lead until Nowitzki hit two free throws 16 seconds into overtime, needing to rally from a 99-84 deficit in the final 5 minutes of regulation. The Mavericks never let the Thunder go ahead in the extra period.

Dirk Dominates Late, Thunder Dealt Devestating Blow

I still can't get over Dirk Nowitzki's offensive play. The Thunder have defended him reasonably well, but it simply doesn't matter. Dirk is slaying OKC, and making it look easy. In the final 4:30 of the 4th quarter Monday night, he was legendary.

"Guys found me in my spots," said Nowitzki. "I was able to shoot over them some, but a lot of credit goes to Jason Kidd. He won defensive battles and hit the big three in overtime to put us over the top."

As great as Dirk was, he was still his usual humble self, deflecting praise onto his teammates.

The Mavericks are now a game away from advancing to their second NBA Finals. Game 5 of the WCF in Dallas is set for Wednesday with an 8:00 tip.

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