Game 2 quoteboard: Mavericks coach Rick Carlisle -- 'Their bench was dominant when they played'

“They missed some shots that they normally do make, but we made them miss.

“James has been improving ever since we drafted him. We have a lot of confidence in him. He made big basketball plays. He is a playmaker, and I thought he did it all tonight. I thought he's, since we made the trade, stepped up to another level.

“Our second-half defense was good. We're playing against one of the premier teams in basketball. It was good. I told our guys playing perfect is impossible, but playing hard is possible.

“We weren't getting a lot of things done, and I stayed with Eric.

“(Nick) deserves to make those shots and to make those free throws. He just does so many good things for our team. Nick has a lot of heart. He plays with a pure heart and does a lot for the team.

“Dirk (Nowitzki) is one of the best players offensively at that spot. We saw that a couple nights ago. We did a good job of getting into him. It's not easy. They guy still had nearly 30 points. That tells you how great he really is.

“We always felt confident in our bench. The 50 points they gave us was the game. They did a really good job. It's good that the guys came in and chipped in for us.

“We knew we had to get a road win. If you want to advance, you had to get a win on this court. It was nice to get a road win. This is a great place to play a road game.

“We were increasing the lead and making shots, and I didn't want to mess with the rhythm. Eric was playing well. It had nothing to do with Russell. The temptation was there when they cut it to six. I believe in all of our guys. I believe in what they do out there.”