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RECAP
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BOX SCORE
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GAME FLOW
SALT LAKE CITY (AP) – Dirk Nowitzki changed the script. This
time, he made all the big shots, not Utah's perennial All-Stars John Stockton and Karl Malone.
|  | | Dirk Nowitzki scored 12 of his 27 points in the final two minutes. |
Nowitzki scored 12 of his team's final 14 points in the last two
minutes to power the Dallas Mavericks to a dramatic 98-90 comeback
victory over the Utah Jazz.
"Nothing was going in for me most of the game, so I felt I
needed to make something happen there at the end," said Nowitzki,
who finished 5-of-18 from the field but made 15-of-17 from the
line.
The Mavericks held the Jazz without a field goal for more than
seven minutes in the fourth quarter to win at the Delta Center for
the third time in a row after not winning here for 11 years.
"This is a big win for us. A huge win. When you play a a great
team like Utah and win ... it helps get you ready for the
playoffs," said Juwan Howard, who scored 8 of his 10 points in the
fourth quarter.
"I thought we lost our composure a little bit. We did things
that are uncharacteristic for us," said Stockton, who had 12
assists but made only one of his 10 field goal attempts.
Karl Malone had 21 points and Donyell Marshall scored 17,
including two 3-pointers in the last minutes to end Utah's late
drought. The Jazz have lost four in a row against teams bound for
the Western Conference playoffs.
Dallas held the Jazz to 5-of-20 shooting in the fourth quarter
and Malone to just one fourth-quarter point.
"It was a tough game and a very physical game, but we were able
to stand up to them," Nowitzki said of the ragged contest that
featured six technicals and two flagrant fouls.
"It was our defense. We played defense by committee in the
fourth quarter and tried to take them (Stockton and Malone) out of
their stuff," Howard said.
Michael Finley, who hit five 3-pointers, kept the Mavericks close until
Nowitzki took over down the stretch to get Dallas off to a good
start on its five-game, 10-day road swing through Western
Conference cities.
With the scored knotted at 84, Nowitzki made a driving layup and
was flagrantly fouled by Marshall. He made one of the two ensuing
free throws.
Nowitzki, who struggled from the field most of the night, then
converted another three-point play and followed with two more free
throws to make it 92-84.
He converted four more free throws and Nash added two more to
quell any hopes for a last-minute Jazz rally.
"We told each other we have to step it up. It felt good to
finish the game strong," Nowitzki said.
Dallas outscored the Jazz 34-24 in the final period to give Utah
its 11th home loss of the season.
Utah's starting guard tandem of Stockton and John Starks made
only 3-of-23 field goals and the Mavericks ran past the Jazz for an
28-9 edge in fast-break points.
Finley hit two 3-pointers in a 12-2 run to draw Dallas even at
62, the first tie since 20-20 early in the second quarter.
Powered by a 10-0 burst in the second quarter, the Jazz led
46-35 at the half while holding Dallas to 29 percent shooting.
Game notes
Monday was Stockton's 39th birthday. ... Don Nelson
received his second technical and was ejected with 42.6 seconds
left in the first half after several heated arguments with referee
Derrick Stafford. ... China has granted 1999 Dallas draftee Wang
Zhizhi permission to play with the Mavericks for the rest of the
NBA season. The 7-foot-1 center's first game for the Mavericks
could be against Atlanta on April 5, China's official Xinhua News
Agency said Monday, quoting Mavericks assistant Donnie Nelson, who
is in China.
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NBA Scoreboard
Dallas Clubhouse
Utah Clubhouse
RECAPS
Philadelphia 90
Milwaukee 78
Denver 109
Chicago 104
Phoenix 104
LA Lakers 83
Dallas 98
Utah 90
Portland 104
LA Clippers 96
Seattle 104
Cleveland 86
New York 89
Golden State 87
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