OAKLAND, Calif. – So now who are the Schmoes?

The Mavericks' once-magical season poofed into history Thursday night as the Golden State Warriors climbed on the back of one-legged Baron Davis and emotionally sound Stephen Jackson to whip the No. 1 seeded Mavericks, 111-86, and win the first-round series 4-2.

As stunning as this galactic upset is, the end was no shock at all. The Mavericks lost the game the same way they lost the series. They were addicted to 3-point shots early, played flimsy defense in the second half and were outworked all night long as they became the first top seed to fall to a No. 8 seed since the NBA went to a best-of-seven format in the first round in 2003.

Those 67 wins in the regular season never seemed so hollow.

"Great regular season, but a disappointing finish in the playoffs," said Jason Terry, one of many Mavericks who under-performed throughout the series. "We all take fault in our mistakes. But you need to give credit where credit is due. That's a hot team. I've never seen those guys shoot like that. Ever."

It's true that the Warriors were torrid. It's also true that the Mavericks weren't. They shot 37.6 percent from the field, including 37 3-point attempts, just five off their NBA playoff record against Sacramento in 2003.

"Our goal was to win the championship, so this is disappointing," said Jerry Stackhouse, one of the few Mavs who showed signs of life or fight. "But you can't afford a slipup like we had in Game 1. We didn't take advantage of what we worked hard for in the regular season.

"But on the flip side, that was a hot team. And they beat us."

The Mavericks lost home-court advantage in the playoff opener and never could beat the Warriors in three games at Oracle Arena.

Going into the series, it was Don Nelson who called his team "Nellie and the Schmoes." But the Mavericks looked like the team with a bunch of nobodies who were just happy to be here. They have lost eight of their last 10 playoff games - the final four in the 2006 NBA Finals and four of six to the Warriors.

The series is a huge blow to the Mavericks, who were coached by Nelson from the lean years until 2005. He came back to frustrate and embarrass his former team and owner, Mark Cuban.

"This is my 19th year in the NBA, and this is probably the toughest situation in 19 years," Mavericks coach Avery Johnson said. "And it's one of the more disappointing situations. But tip your hats to Golden State."

The series was capped with an awful performance in Dallas' biggest game of the season. They were humiliated in every facet. Dirk Nowitzki had maybe the worst playoff game of his life, missing his first eight shots and going just 1-of-11 through three quarters. Nothing after that mattered.

He never solved Golden State's quick, swarming defense, and the Mavericks were rudderless without their leader. Aside from Stackhouse, who had 18 points by halftime, the Mavericks lacked punch and, after staying close for a half, were completely dominated in the third quarter.

"I put a lot of pressure on myself to perform," Nowitzki said. "The expectations of myself are very high. And if I don't meet those expectations, obviously, I'm going to be disappointed. So I couldn't really put my stamp on it the way I wanted to."

The Mavericks shot 6-of-21 in the third quarter, when they were outscored, 36-15. It might as well have been, 360-15, because they were down, 86-63, going into the fourth quarter, which was little more than a lovefest between the Warriors and their 20,677-strong fans who whooped and hollered as their team rolled to a series win in their first playoff appearance since 1994.

Jackson had a career playoff best 33 points, including a franchise playoff-record seven 3-pointers. Davis, playing with a strained right hamstring, still diced the Mavericks' defense for 20 points, 10 rebounds and six assists.

Nelson said his team played about as well as it was capable of.

"This is a pretty special place to be right now," he said. "Hard to believe we got such a big lead."

It topped out at 28 points, and the number of "biggest," "most" and "best" achievements for the Warriors was too long to list.

The Mavericks now face an off-season of serious contemplation. They must decide, among other things, whether this leadership core - Nowitzki, Josh Howard and Jason Terry - can lead them back to the NBA Finals.

Based on this series and Thursday night in particular, the answer seems obvious, although Cuban reiterated his desire to keep the nucleus of this team together after the loss.

The Mavericks made no excuses, other than the fact that they ran into a buzzsaw. After Davis came up limping midway through the first quarter, he was incapable of driving to the basket - or stopping a drive - the rest of the night.

And yet, he was better than most everybody else on the court that had two healthy legs.

The Warriors' thin manpower didn't stop them, and neither did the Mavs.

LOUIS DeLUCA / DMN

Dirk Nowitzki scored only eight points in Game 6.

There was no other way to describe the first quarter except that there's probably never been one like it.

The Mavericks missed all 14 of the shots they took from inside the 3-point arc.

And they only trailed by three points.

With 11:22 left in the second quarter, Terry finally made the Mavs' first two-point field goal on a 20-foot jumper.

They fell in love with the 3-point line early on, making 7-of-11 from long range in the first quarter. That's the only reason they were within, 28-25, after 12 minutes. But it was a bad sign because they spent the rest of the evening thinking they could make them.

They couldn't, which is why vacation starts today.