OUT AT HOME.

This article discusses the first round playoff series between the Sacramento Kings and Dallas Mavericks, in which the Sacramento Kings were victorious. It is an NBA axiom that teams play better at home, especially under the increased pressure of the playoffs. But no team in this postseason is quite as bipolar as the Dallas Mavericks, who went a franchise-record 36-5 at American Airlines Center and 16-25 on the road during the regular season. Perhaps sometime before Game 4 on Monday, Rick Adelman sneaked his team into American Airlines Center and made like Norman Dale, the coach in Hoosiers who had his small-town players measure the distance between the free throw line and rim of a big-city arena to reassure them about the immutability of court dimensions. Or perhaps that's what Dallas coach Don Nelson should have done, as his team, which led the league in free throw shooting, hit only 20 of 33 from the line in a 94-92 loss.That left the Mavs in the unenviable position of having to take two games at Arco to advance to the second round. The crowd at American Airlines Center isn't quite as loud--the cowbell-clanging fans at Arco are closer to the court, and there are few corporations in Sacramento to fill the prime seats with sedate execs--but Mavericks rooters don't lack for enthusiasm.