DALLAS — The epicenter of the sports world right now is Dallas, Texas.
The Dallas Mavericks punched their ticket to the Western Conference Finals on Saturday night, closing out the top-seeded Oklahoma City Thunder 117-116, in a game that ended at 9:40 p.m. Central Time
20 hours and 42 minutes earlier, at 12:58 a.m. the Dallas Stars earned their own Western Conference Final berth, with a 2-1 overtime win over the Colorado Avalanche, to close out their series in Game 6.
Now, the Stars and Mavs mark the first pair of NBA/NHL teams who share an arena, to advance to the Conference Finals in the same year, since the New Jersey Devils and New Jersey Nets did it in 2003 while playing at Meadowlands Arena in East Rutherford, New Jersey.
Last year, the Florida Panthers and Miami Heat both advanced to their respective conference finals, but the Panthers play in Amerant Bank Arena in Sunrise, Florida. The Heat play at the Kaseya Center, in Miami.
Now the Mavs and Stars will spend a two week period starting Wednesday, alternating days back and forth for their respective seven-game series.
The two-week stretch of sports madness looks like this:
Mavs Game 1 | Wednesday, May 22 at 7:30 p.m. | Denver or Minneapolis
Stars Game 1 | Thursday, May 23 at 7:30 p.m. | American Airlines Center
Mavs Game 2 | Friday, May 24 at 7:30 p.m. | Denver or Minneapolis
Stars Game 2 | Saturday, May 25 at 7 p.m. | American Airlines Center
Mavs Game 3 | Sunday, May 26 at 7 p.m. | American Airlines Center
Stars Game 3 | Monday, May 27 at TBD | Vancouver or Edmonton
Mavs Game 4 | Tuesday, May 28 at 7:30 p.m. | American Airlines Center
Stars Game 4 | Wednesday, May 29 at TBD | Vancouver or Edmonton
Mavs Game 5 | Thursday, May 30 at 7:30 p.m. | Denver or Minneapolis *
Stars Game 5 | Friday, May 31 at TBD | American Airlines Center *
Mavs Game 6 | Saturday, June 1 at 7:30 p.m. | American Airlines Center *
Stars Game 6 | Sunday, June 2 at TBD | Vancouver or Edmonton *
Mavs Game 7 | Monday, June 3 at 7:30 p.m. | Denver or Minneapolis *
Stars Game 7 | Tuesday, June 4 at TBD | American Airlines Center *
For both the Mavs and Stars, their conference finals opponents are still yet to be determined. The defending champion Denver Nuggets host the Minnesota Timberwolves in a Game 7 on Sunday. The winner of that game will host the Mavs in Games 1, 2, 5, and 7.
The Edmonton Oilers and Vancouver Canucks play a Game 7 on Monday. The winner of that game will be in Dallas for Game 1 on May 22nd, and would host Games 3, 4, and 6.
Other headlines:
