Nowitzki scored 31 points and Nash added 29 as the Dallas Mavericks put together an exciting fourth-quarter rally and posted a 111-102 victory over the Indiana Pacers.
After three quarters, the Mavericks trailed 79-72 and were shooting just 37 percent (29-of-78) from the field. But slowly they began to take control and Nash's 3-pointer with 4:35 left gave them a 93-91 lead, their first since late in the second quarter.
Following a timeout, the Pacers evened the game 93-93 on rookie Jamaal Tinsley's jumper with 4:16 left. But Nowitzki and Nash each made jumpers around Nowitzki's free throw to push the lead to five with 2:16 remaining.
| from Pacers-Mavs: 56k | 300k  Eduardo Najera grabs a rebound against Jamaal Tinsley in Dallas. Glenn James NBAE/Getty Images |
"I think we beat ourselves," Tinsley said. "We should have been doing the same thing that we've been doing. That got us the lead. Then we started going 1-on-1 a lot. They made shots down at the end and we didn't."
"It wasn't really about the offense in my opinion," Rose added. You can't allow a team like Dallas to get on an emotional joyride. Once they start knocking down shots and the crowd gets into the game, Dirk and Steve are hard to stop in that situation. You give up 39 points in the fourth quarter and you are going to lose every time."
Nash shot 5-for-7 from 3-point range and Nowitzki was 2-of-4. Overall, the Mavs made 42 percent (8-of-19) from the arc.
Nash had averaged just 12 points in the last two games as he failed to pick up the slack for injured All-Star guard Michael Finley.
"We played poorly at first for the most part," Nash said. "We fought hard and things weren't going our way. I think what was key, we just stuck with it. We could have easily kind of gone through the motions and lost this game.
"We played well against the Knicks and then struggled for three quarters tonight," Mavericks coach Don Nelson added. "They have given me everything they've got. I'm real proud of the way the team has come together in Mike's absence. But it sure would have been nice to have him tonight."
In the fourth quarter, Indiana's defense allowed Dallas to move the ball around freely and set up open shots. The Mavs shot 62.5 percent (10-of-16) in the fourth quarter and improved to 14-5 against the Eastern Conference.
The Pacers shot 44 percent (39-of-88) but just 8-of-21 down the stretch.
Coach Isiah Thomas attributed the offensive collapse to his players being impatient and rushing shots.
"We just stopped executing," he said. "We came off and shot the basketball as opposed to being patient, swinging the ball to the other side of the floor and taking advantage of mismatches as we did all night long."
Jalen Rose and Reggie Miller led five players in double figures with 18 points apiece. But Jermaine O'Neal, who was guarded by Nowitzki, had just two of his 17 points in the final period.
Nowitzki was handed the tough assignment of O'Neal because center Shawn Bradley missed a fifth straight game with a bone bruise of the left knee.