|
|
 |
 |
|
| |
Thursday, Jan. 27 8:30pm ET
Mavs win sixth of their past eight | |||||
|
| ||||||
RECAP
|
BOX SCORE
|
 GAME FLOW
DALLAS (AP) -- The Dallas Mavericks didn't play very well on a wintery Thursday night, but they didn't have to. The Los Angeles Clippers were in town and played even worse. Dirk Nowitzki scored 24 points, four during a key fourth-quarter run, as the Mavericks handed the Clippers their 10th consecutive defeat, 99-90, despite a career-high 35 points from Derek Anderson. "It would have been devastating to lose to the Clippers at home," said Mavericks point guard Steve Nash. "We can't slip up in these games." The Mavericks have won six of their last eight to move within 10 games of .500 (16-26). With a 7-5 record and one game left this month, the Mavericks are guaranteed a winning January for the first time since going 9-7 in January of 1990. "This moves us up another notch," said Mavericks guard Erick Strickland. "We want to make a run before the All-Star break. We need to do a better job of putting away teams. We're just finding a way to win." Michael Finley added 20 points, 10 assists and seven rebounds for the Mavericks, who won their third straight in their most successful stretch of the season. The attendance was announced at 11,927, but the actual crowd was only about 4,000 because of a winter storm. Dallas won despite being outrebounded 45-39 and on a night when the Clippers went 25-of-27 from the free throw line while the Mavericks made 12 of 14. "I thought that we played terrible and still came out with a win," Finley said. "That's saying a lot for a team that is used to giving up games like this." Lamar Odom had 21 points and 12 rebounds for the Clippers, who've lost four in a row to the Mavericks. "We had our moments tonight, but we committed 21 turnovers and it's tough to win on the road with that many turnovers," said Clippers coach Chris Ford. "We had a great game from Derek Anderson. He was absolutely fabulous tonight." The Mavericks took an 80-72 lead into the final quarter, with Anderson's 12-point third quarter keeping the Clippers in the game. The Clippers cut the deficit to 88-84 with 5:24 left on Anderson's 20-footer. But Nowitzki had a free throw on a technical foul and later connected on a 3-pointer to spark a 9-0 run and help the Mavericks to a 96-84 lead with 2:30 to play. "We just have to come out and let these teams know that they don't have a chance here," said Nowitzki. "We've got to stay on a roll if we want to get into the playoff picture." Dallas expanded its seven-point halftime lead by opening the third quarter with a 22-12 run for a 78-61 advantage. The Mavericks made nine of their first 10 field goal attempts in the second quarter and outscored the Clippers 33-21 for a 56-49 halftime lead. Game notesAnderson scored the most points by a Clipper this season. ... The Mavericks signed guard Greg Buckner for the rest of the season. Buckner had previously signed two 10-day contracts. ... The Clippers have lost 14 of their last 15 games. ... Mavericks forward Gary Trent was suspended without pay for one game and fined $10,000 by the league for his role in an incident during Tuesday night's win over Golden State. Teammate Shawn Bradley was fined $3,000 for a separate incident in the same game. ... Finley had his 300th career steal. | ALSO SEE NBA Scoreboard LA Clippers Clubhouse Dallas Clubhouse Davis, Trent suspended after wild Mavs-Warriors game
RECAPS Charlotte 117 Detroit 102
Dallas 99
  | |||||