DALLAS -- Vince Carter knew right away the exact date of the last time he had a buzzer-beating try in a playoff game -- 13 years ago. Its seared in the memory of the 16-year veteran because he missed that one. He was on target Saturday. Carter hit a double-pump 3-pointer at the buzzer to give the Dallas Mavericks a 109-108 victory in Game 3 and a first-round series lead over the top-seeded San Antonio Spurs. With 1.7 seconds left, Carter took an inbound pass from Jose Calderon in the left corner. After a quick pump fake got Manu Ginobili in the air -- moments after the Argentine guard had given the Spurs the lead -- Carter released the ball just in time. He strutted stone-faced toward Dirk Nowitzki, who was waving his arms wildly as he jumped on Carter. Mavericks owner Mark Cuban joined the celebration on the court before the automatic review confirmed the obvious: The shot was good. And its one Carter said he practiced. "May 20th, Game 7," said Carter, referring to an 88-87 loss to Philadelphia in the 2001 Eastern Conference finals when he was he was the dunking sensation known as "Vinsanity" with Toronto. Carter had graduated from North Carolina earlier that day before flying on a private plane to Philadelphia. "I dont mind taking the game-winning shot," said Carter, who otherwise had a rough day before finishing with 11 points. "I dont mind missing them, and dealing with it. So I think having that mentality helps me." Monta Ellis kept the eighth-seeded Mavericks close in the fourth quarter and finished with 29 points. Tim Duncan led the Spurs with 22 points. Game 4 is Monday night in Dallas. Ginobili, who scored 12 points, dribbled out most of the last 24 seconds before going around Duncan and scoring over Samuel Dalembert for a 108-106 lead. His go-ahead shot spun around the rim and almost came out before falling in. "You never think its over, especially in here," Ginobili said. "Weve got experience on that. As long as you dont see zero zero over there, its not over." The Mavericks kept the home-court advantage they earned by taking Game 2 in San Antonio to snap a 10-game losing streak against the Spurs. And Dallas won despite the Spurs holding Nowitzki under 20 points in a third straight playoff game for the first time since they did it to him in his first post-season in 2001. The big German finished with 18. Dallas still had a chance in the closing seconds because of Ellis, who had a playoff career high that included 12 fourth-quarter points. He tied the score twice in the final 1:10, first with a three-point play on a floater after he was fouled by Boris Diaw. After Diaw put the Spurs back in front with a baseline jumper, Ellis hit another high floater in the lane with 24.9 seconds left, setting up Ginobilis dramatic shot. Tony Parker had 19 points, but just two after halftime for the Spurs. Tiago Splitter had 14 points and 13 rebounds and Kawhi Leonard awoke from a series-long slumber with 17 points, including a big 3-pointer in the fourth quarter. "In the second half, I didnt play," Parker said. "They were doing the same thing." Dalembert did most of his damage in the first half but still made his presence felt after halftime, finished 13 points, 10 rebounds and four blocks and making two free throws for a 104-all tie after rebounding a Nowitzki miss. The 32-year-old journeyman centre dove for a loose ball to get the crowd on its feet, and then knocked Leonard to the floor when the San Antonio forward was driving for a dunk. After the play, he shook his head as if to say "dont bring that in here." Referees originally called Dalembert for a flagrant foul, but reversed it on replay. Leonard missed both free throws. "When his activity is like this, hes rebounding it and hes got a presence at the rim it makes such a big difference for us," Dallas coach Rick Carlisle said. Calderon had 16 points, including 10 during a fast Dallas start in the first quarter. He also had nine assists. NOTES: Marion went to Chicago immediately after Dallas Game 2 win in San Antonio for the birth of his first child, a boy. He celebrated a little early with 20 points against the Spurs, the most for him in the playoffs since the 2011 NBA Finals. ... Splitters double-double was the first of his playoff career. Gary Cahill Jersey . Eller scored the midway through the third period after Dallas scored twice to tie it, leading Canadiens to a 6-4 win over the Stars on Thursday night. 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John Wall had 20 points and 11 assists, and Beal scored 10 of his 15 points during the second quarter as Washington pulled away for a 106-82 victory on Saturday.A good way to describe Morgan Riellys season would be a gradual build. It started in training camp when there were questions about whether Rielly would crack the Leafs opening day roster or be returned to the Moose Jaw Warriors of the WHL. While he broke camp with the Leafs, Rielly had to wait until the teams third game of the season to see action. Then he played his tenth regular season game on October 26th against the Pittsburgh Penguins, meaning the first year of his three year entry level contract had kicked in. On January 15th against the Buffalo Sabres, another threshold reached as Rielly played his 40th game, meaning this season would count as a full season of service toward the seven required for unrestricted free agency. All the while through the first two months Rielly fought to claim an everyday spot in Torontos top three defence pairings, forced out of the line up on nine different occasions as a healthy scratch. But that appears to be a thing of the past now too; Rielly has not watched from the press box since December 8th against Boston. “Obviously he feels a lot more comfortable,” said Randy Carlyle, before the team departed for Florida on Monday afternoon. “Were starting to see the true Morgan Rielly. I think like any young player, theyre conservative in the early going; they dont want to make any mistakes.” Now a fixture among the Leafs top six defencemen and also seeing time on a second power play pairing with Jake Gardiner, Rielly is beginning to emerge in the form of a confident puck carrier. “I think over the course of the year so far, Ive been able to gain some confidence and Ive really got pretty comfortable jumping up in the play and trying to carry the puck a bit more,” said Rielly. Now with points in six of his last nine games (1-5), Rielly has moved into third among Leafs defensemen in scoring. Paired with Tim Gleason since midway through last Thursdays game against the Floridda Panthers, the veteran defenseman has been impressed with the 19-year-olds poise with the puck.dddddddddddd “I notice how well he skates with the puck and how confident he looks skating with the puck,” said Gleason. “Its something that I wish I had when I was 19, 20 years old. Hes ahead of the game I think at his age, especially as a defenceman.” After playing with Jake Gardiner for a stretch of 10 games, a partnership with Gleason might be just the recipe to free Rielly up to take chances carrying the puck up the ice. “I hope thats the case,” said Gleason. “Hes a puck moving guy who skates well; hes one of those guys who can lead the rush and thats tough to do in this league. He can go whenever he wants and Im more than happy to kind of keep the fort down and do my thing. I think its a good mixture for sure.” The reassurance that Gleason wont stray too far from home has been beneficial for Rielly. “I like playing with Jake but playing with Timmys been great, hes always back there playing good ‘D and that helps me because I like to jump up a little bit.” So far, the feeling has been mutual for Gleason. “I have a good time playing with him,” Gleason explained. “If he has any questions, were different types of players so I dont know if Id have all the answers for him on the offensive side of things but hes grown really well since he started.” As Rielly continues to develop into the player the Leafs hoped they were getting when they drafted him fifth overall in 2012, Randy Carlyle insisted the Leafs will remain cautious in their approach with the young defenseman. “We dont want to get too far ahead of ourselves with any young player, we want to make sure we continue to measure and afford him the ice time that allows him to develop but, again, we dont want to put him in situations that he cant possibly have success in.” ' ' '