Nuggets-Mavericks Preview

By MATT BEARDMORE
Posted Feb 15 2012 1:19AM

Dallas Mavericks star Dirk Nowitzki called his own team "old and slow" the last time the Denver Nuggets were in town.

The defending champs have shaped up since then.

Dallas goes for a season high-tying fifth straight victory Wednesday night when it hosts a Nuggets team going for its fourth consecutive road win in this series.

A day after trailing by as many as 35 points during a 105-94 season-opening loss to Miami in an NBA finals rematch, the Mavericks were routed 115-93 by the visiting Nuggets on Dec. 26.

Dallas surrendered 20 consecutive points in the second quarter of that contest and heard plenty of boos as it dropped its third in a row at home versus Denver.

The Mavericks (18-11), though, have since shaken off their 0-3 start and worked their way up to fourth in the Western Conference standings.

Nowitzki deserves much of the credit. Named an All-Star even though he said he was undeserving, Nowitzki is averaging 25.7 points and shooting 51.9 percent over his last six games - finally finding his form after some poor stretches and a planned four-game absence to strengthen his sore right knee and improve his conditioning.

"He's the classic case of a great player you just stay the course," coach Rick Carlisle said after Nowitzki scored half of his 22 points in the final 6-plus minutes of Monday's 96-92 victory over the Los Angeles Clippers. "I played with Larry Bird for three years and there were nights when he'd go 2 for 13 and then hit the last three shots to win the game. Dirk's the same kind of guy."

Nowitzki has team bests with 45 points and 13 rebounds in two games against the Nuggets in 2011-12. He scored 25 points with nine boards in a 105-95 victory in Denver last Wednesday as Dallas snapped losing streaks of three overall and four versus the Nuggets.

The Nuggets (17-12) now make their final visit of the season to Dallas in 2011-12 following Tuesday's 109-92 home victory over Phoenix.

Arron Afflalo continued the best scoring surge of his career with a team-high 20 points to help Denver win its second straight following a season-worst five-game skid. Afflalo is averaging 20.3 points - well above his 11.9 season average - in four games since leading scorer Danilo Gallinari went down with a chip fracture in his left foot.

The Mavericks backcourt of Jason Kidd and Vince Carter should also be concerned about Denver point guard Ty Lawson, who has 44 points in his last two games.

Lawson scored 27 the last time Denver visited the Mavs.

Nene, who has a team-high 17 rebounds in the two meetings with Dallas this season, could miss a second consecutive game with a left calf strain. Denver might also be without starting center Timofey Mozgov (ankle) for a seventh straight game.

Those absences could make it easier for Nowitzki, center Brendan Haywood and Shawn Marion to continue their strong work on the boards for the Mavericks. The trio is averaging 20.5 rebounds during the current four-game winning streak.

Dallas won a season-high five in a row Jan. 7-14.

Mavericks win 5th in a row, 102-84 over Nuggets

By STEPHEN HAWKINS
Posted Feb 16 2012 12:25AM

DALLAS (AP) Shawn Marion is becoming quite a shut-down defender for the Dallas Mavericks while still contributing on offense.

Marion had game highs of 16 points, 10 rebounds and six assists, and the 6-foot-7 forward also helped to frustrate Denver's top scoring threat as the Mavericks stretched their winning streak to five with a 102-84 victory over the Nuggets on Wednesday night.

Dallas once again often used Marion to help defend the opponent's best offensive option. Ty Lawson finished with only three points on 1-of-8 shooting.

"Lawson's penetration is something everybody in the league is trying to solve. ... We had good concentration, kept him from shredding us on the inside," Dallas coach Rick Carlisle said. "Marion's versatility on the defensive end came up huge for us."

Marion led six Mavericks who scored in double figures on a night when the team was already without two guards before Delonte West broke his finger in the second quarter. The defending NBA champions matched their longest winning streak of the season.

"Everybody who put on a uniform contributed," Marion said. "We came out aggressive and attacked them and had them on their heels."

Dallas jumped out to a 9-1 lead in the first 3 minutes and was never really challenged.

Lawson finished 13 points below his scoring average and the Nuggets shot a season-low 36 percent (30 of 84) with their worst-scoring half followed by their lowest-scoring quarter. They came in as the league's highest-scoring team at 104 points per game.

The Mavericks' winning streak, coming after a three-day break that followed three losses in a row, includes a victory Monday night over the Los Angeles Clippers when Carlisle had Marion guarding point guard Chris Paul to start the game.

"Dallas has turned into an incredibly good defensive team," Denver coach George Karl said.

Vince Carter had 15 points for the Mavericks. Lamar Odom scored 14, Jason Kidd 13, Dirk Nowitzki 12 and Brandon Wright 10. All the starters played fewer than 27 minutes.

Rudy Fernandez led the Nuggets with 14 points. Al Harrington, another reserve, had 13.

"We struggled on offense and that affected our defense," Harrington said. "They were just a better team tonight and we've got to move on."

Kidd had consecutive 3-pointers, one from the top of the key and the other from the right corner, to cap a 16-3 run that pushed the Mavericks ahead 72-49 with 4:20 left in the third quarter.

Denver trailed 51-39 after its lowest-scoring first half of the season. The Nuggets followed that in the third quarter by scoring only 15 points, their fewest in any period this season.

"We were struggling to find points," Karl said.

At the same time, Dallas had its highest-scoring third quarter of the season, piling up 32 points to push ahead 83-54.

Already without guards Jason Terry (strained right quad) and Rodrigue Beaubois (personal reasons), West went down with an ugly injury to his right ring finger. Blood was clearly visible after he fractured and dislocated his finger while playing defense.

"He's going to be out for a while," Carlisle said.

While Terry's injury isn't thought to be serious, Carlisle had already said he would also miss Friday night's game at Philadelphia because of a "personal situation."

Denver was still without Nene (left calf strain), center Timofey Mozgov (left ankle sprain) and forward Danilo Gallinari (left ankle sprain).

In a sign of things to come for the Mavs, four players scored in the opening 9-1 stretch.

Carter had two free throws less than a minute into the game to put Dallas ahead to stay before Kidd converted a steal by Carter into a 3-pointer. Nowitzki and Marion followed with jumpers.

Odom's putback of his own miss made it 11-4.

On the next Dallas possession, Odom became the first Mavericks player to score consecutive points when he hit a 3.

"Everybody's getting better and better as far as their game and their conditioning," Odom said. "We're having fun playing together."

Notes: Nuggets F Corey Brewer received his championship ring from the Mavericks before the game. Brewer, a bench player during Dallas' playoff run last season, was acquired from the Mavericks in a trade on Dec. 13. He had nine points. Caron Butler, now with the Clippers, got his ring Monday night when Los Angeles was in town. ... Mavericks owner Mark Cuban has stepped in to save an annual St. Patrick's Day parade in Dallas, writing a $40,000 check to ensure the parade that has been held since 1979 goes on. "I figured I had lost enough brain cells there, everybody else should get that opportunity, too," Cuban joked before the game.

Notebook: Mavericks 102, Nuggets 84

Posted Wednesday February 15, 2012 11:52PM

By Dave Ivey, for NBA.com

THE FACTS: Denver's high-octane offense stalled in Dallas on Wednesday as Shawn Marion and the Mavericks cruised to a 102-84 victory against the Nuggets at the American Airlines Center. Marion had 16 points, 10 rebounds and six assists as the Mavericks matched their longest winning streak of the season at five straight. Five others scored in double figures for Dallas: Vince Carter (15), Lamar Odom (14), Jason Kidd (13), Dirk Nowitzki (12) and Brandan Wright (10).

The Nuggets, who had won three straight meetings in Dallas and came in as the NBA's top-scoring team at 104.1 points per game, got 14 points from Rudy Fernandez -- none in the second half -- and 12 points and 14 boards from Kosta Koufos. Al Harrington had 13 points and rookies Kenneth Faried (12) and Jordan Hamilton (10) also reached twin digits.

QUOTABLE: "I'm just doing what I do every game. Y'all are just not paying attention to me. I'm just playing my game and I pride myself in being the best basketball player I can. Not position-wise, but as a player as a whole. I do it all."
-- Marion, who was 8-for-14 from the field.

THE STAT: It was Marion's fifth double-double. The rest of the Mavericks have combined for three this season, two by Nowitzki and one by Brendan Haywood. Dallas is 13-1 when Marion scores 13-plus.

TURNING POINT: The Mavericks were never threatened after a 12-1 run in the second quarter. Back-to-back 3-pointers by Carter, back-to-back dunks by Wright and two free throws by Dominique Jones put Dallas ahead 49-33 with 1:52 left in the half.

HOT: Kidd matched his season high with four 3-pointers (three in the third quarter). He also drained four in the first meeting against Denver in Dallas on Dec. 26.

NOT: The Nuggets set season lows for points in a half (39 in the first) and a quarter (15 in the third on 4-for-17 shooting). Denver shot a season-worst 35.7 percent from the field, including 22.2 percent (6-for-27) from 3-point range.

GOOD MOVE: Marion continues to make his case for All-Defensive Team consideration. His primary assignment in this game, speedy point guard Ty Lawson, managed just three points on 1-for-8 shooting against "The Matrix."

BAD MOVE: Mavericks guard Delonte West suffered a fractured and dislocated right ring finger while trying to reach in for a steal midway through the second quarter. He finished with three points, three assists, two blocks and two steals in nearly 12 minutes. There was no immediate word on how long West might be out.

FANTASY SPOTLIGHT: Carter (20,794) passed "The Admiral," David Robinson (20,790) for 33rd place on the NBA's all-time scoring list. Nowitzki recorded his 999th career blocked shot and needs one more to join Clifford Robinson and Rasheed Wallace as the only players in league history with at least 1,000 blocks and 1,000 3-pointers.

INSIDE THE ARENA: The Mavs gave Nuggets forward Corey Brewer his 2011 NBA championship ring in a pregame ceremony. He received a standing ovation. "He became a fan favorite here because of his high energy and his attacking style of play," Dallas head coach Rick Carlisle said. "This guy's a winner ... and now he's a world champion." Brewer was just 3-for-15 against his old team, finishing with nine points, seven rebounds, five steals and four assists.

NOTABLE: Mavericks sixth man and second-leading scorer Jason Terry didn't play due to a mild right quadriceps strain. He will also miss Friday's game at Philadelphia for undisclosed personal reasons. Terry had played in 126 consecutive games. ... Dallas guard Rodrigue Beaubois was not with the team due to a family matter. ... Nuggets centers Nene (left calf strain) and Timofey Mozgov (left ankle sprain) could return this weekend. ... The Mavericks are 9-1 when they score 100 or more points.

UP NEXT: For the Mavericks, Friday @ Philadelphia, Sunday @ New York, Monday vs. Boston. For the Nuggets, Friday @ Memphis, Sunday @ Oklahoma City, Monday vs. Minnesota.

• Nuggets: Nene
• Mavericks: Terry, Williams

• Nuggets: Afflalo
• Mavericks: --

• Lead Changes: 0
• Times Tied: 0

• Arena: American Airlines Center, Dallas, TX
• Officials: #7 Kevin Fehr, #22 Bill Spooner, #35 Kane Fitzgerald
• Attendance: 20075
• Duration: 2:11