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The Denver Nuggets have been dominant at home in these playoffs, so they should be able to finish off the Dallas Mavericks in Game 5 tonight.

And Denver is a sizable 9-point favorite on WagerWeb.com, with an over/under of 213 ½.

In reality this series could be 2-2, as Dallas should have won Game 3 and then showed some heart in Game 4 in a 119-117 win. That Denver allowed that many points and 50 percent shooting is a bit concerning, but the Nuggets were without Chris “Birdman” Andersen in Game 4 as he had a stomach ailment. Andersen is a key defender on Dallas star Dirk Nowitzki and the Nugs’ best shot-blocker and rebounder. He will play tonight.

With  no Andersen to give him trouble, Nowitzki had 44 points and 13 rebounds in Game 4, in addition to getting to the line 17 times. Dirk is averaging 35 points on 53 percent shooting in the series. Dallas outrebounded the Nuggets 50-34 and Denver managed just seven second-chance points in Game 4.

“It looked like he had a mission,” Denver coach George Karl said of Nowitzki.

Denver starting forward Kenyon Martin had just two points on Monday (foul trouble), and that no doubt will be a different story tonight in Denver. Since losing at home to Houston on March 9, the Nuggets have won 15 in a row at home with a playoff average margin of 15.8 points.

And point guard Chauncey Billups is getting back in a groove after a bad Game 1; Billups has averaged 24.7 points and six assists in the last three games. Carmelo Anthony has been Denver’s best player in this series, topped by a 41-point, 11-rebound effort in a losing effort in Game 4. Of course, he hit the game-winning 3-pointer in Game 3.

Dallas is getting some unlikely help from reserve forward Brandon Bass, who averaged 13.5 points and 5.5 rebounds while getting to the free-throw line 20 times in the two games in Texas.

While no team has rallied from 3-0 down, as the Mavs were, they are thinking of it now as down 3-1, and eight teams have rallied from that hole in NBA history.

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