Mavericks-Magic Preview

By MATT BEARDMORE
Posted Jan 19 2013 2:47PM

The Orlando Magic's last two victories have come against division leaders. They just haven't been able to get the job done against teams below .500.

Orlando will try to avoid a seventh consecutive defeat to an opponent with a losing record when the Dallas Mavericks seek a seventh straight road win in this series Sunday night.

After ending a 10-game skid with a 104-101 victory over the Pacific Division-leading Los Angeles Clippers on Jan. 12, Orlando was routed 120-91 by league-worst Washington on Monday.

The Magic (14-25) rebounded with one of their better performances of the season, a 97-86 victory over Central Division-leading Indiana on Wednesday, but they opened a stretch of five in a row against teams with losing records with a 106-100 loss to Charlotte on Friday.

"We're just still maturing as a group on how to (play at a high level) night in and night out," said swingman Arron Afflalo, who scored a team-high 23 points.

Orlando, loser of seven of eight at home, hasn't beaten the Mavericks there since March 2006. The Magic defeated Dallas 100-98 on March 30 in the teams' last meeting.

Dallas (17-24) was hoping to arrive in Orlando on a five-game winning streak, but its longest run of the season ended with a 117-114 overtime loss to Oklahoma City on Friday.

"The thing that I like is that we're giving ourselves a chance to win against good teams," former Magic player Vince Carter told the Mavericks' official website after finishing with a season-best 29 points. "We're getting ourselves into overtime games. Now, we just have to learn how to close it out."

The Mavericks have dropped eight of nine OT games this season, but the fourth-quarter play of Dirk Nowitzki has been a positive sign. In eight contests since returning to the starting lineup, he's averaging a team-best 5.8 points in the fourth after scoring 12 of his 18 in the final 12 minutes of regulation against the Thunder.

Nowitzki had 28 points and hit the go-ahead jumper with 5.9 seconds left in the fourth quarter as Dallas rallied from 15 down March 30.

Defense continues to be an issue for Orlando, as nine of its last 11 opponents have scored at least 101 points. It will face a Dallas team that's averaged 110.6 points in the last five games.

Six Mavs have scored in double figures in each of the last four games.

The last five meetings between these teams at Orlando have been decided by 10 or fewer points.

Mavericks hold off late Magic surge in 111-105 win

By KYLE HIGHTOWER
Posted Jan 20 2013 10:16PM

ORLANDO, Fla. (AP) If the Dallas Mavericks are going to make it out of the early-season pit they dug, it will require a lot more nights like Sunday.

Two days after seeing a four-game win streak snapped in an overtime loss to Oklahoma City, Shawn Marion scored 20 points, and O.J. Mayo and Vince Carter added 15 apiece as the Mavericks fought off a late Orlando surge and beat the Magic 111-105 on Sunday night.

The Mavericks led by 13 in the fourth quarter, before the Magic pulled within a basket in the final minute.

Dallas hung on, with a combination of late stops, timely free throw makes, and a boost from a bench that outscored Orlando's 40-28. Carter and forward Elton Brand combined for 29 of those 40.

"Me and Vince joke about that," Brand said. "If it's not going well for the starting unit, that' our job, to come in and clean things up. That's what we did...and kind of righted the ship a little bit. Yeah, it's a new role, but I've kind of adjusted to it."

The Mavericks earned their seventh straight road victory in their series against Orlando and now have five days off before hosting division-leader San Antonio on Friday.

"It's good to start winning again," Brand said. "We didn't want to go into our break without winning again."

In his fourth game back since returning from a sprained left shoulder, Glen Davis had his strongest offensive output and led Orlando with 24 points. He was followed by Jameer Nelson with 20 and J. J. Redick's 18.

But familiar turnover and defensive issues plagued the Magic as they lost for the third time in four games. They also fell for the seventh straight time to an opponent with a sub-.500 record.

"We'll continue to work," Magic coach Jacque Vaughn said. "That's the best part of it is we've got games ahead of us and we'll continue to work and that's our best approach. We've been there so we know that this team is capable."

Mavericks coach Rick Carlisle said Dirk Nowitzki, who played in his 15th game following offseason knee surgery, may need until February to get back to full strength.

The former MVP had a modest game, finishing with 12 points (4 for 11 from the field) and seven rebounds. He scored six points in the first half, but was remained active with some early assists as Dallas built a small cushion after digging out of an early hole.

Still at other times his offensive game showed continued signs of rust, as he misfired on a handful of his trademark step-back jumpers. He found his game in some crucial moments in the fourth quarter, though.

The Magic closed to 89-81 on a 3-pointer by Nelson. Nowitzki then hit on back-to-back jumpers and blocked a layup by J.J. Redick that led to a 3-pointer on the other end by Carter.

Orlando still was within striking distance with 2:31 left, though, after a pair of free throws by Arron Afflalo and a basket by Redick cut the Mavericks' lead to 104-100.

Nowitzki came up short on a jumper with just over a minute to play, giving the ball back to the Magic.

Davis then promptly found Nikola Vucevic coming out of a timeout for a 17-footer along the baseline that cut the deficit to just two.

Dallas' Darren Collision hit a 3 on the ensuing trip that pushed the cushion back up to five, but Redick responded in kind on Orlando's next touch to trim it to 107-105 with 25.6 seconds remaining.

Nelson tied up Carter on an inbounds' play following a Dallas timeout, but the Mavericks retained possession after the jump ball.

Nowitzki was fouled and calmly made two free throws to end the threat.

"He's just missed some shots," Marion said when asked about Nowitzki's progress. "Everybody bases this thing on missing some shots. He's Dirk. Like if he ain't hitting his shots he ain't himself. He's been playing well. ... He's back to himself. He feels good. His body feels good. His wind is back right.

"He's just missing some shots he normally hits. That's all."

Magic guard Arron Afflalo said it's up to them to get a handle on their recent late-game and defensive issues.

"I've been in winning environments before and guys will figure it out in time, get tired of losing," he said. "When it pisses you off enough, you'll start to make that adjustment mentally to your own game and apply the team to help win."

The Magic zoomed out to a 20-8 lead, prompting a Dallas timeout.

While the Mavericks gathered around Carlisle during the break, Nowitzki became briefly agitated. He left the huddle and walked off to the bench, where he remained for the rest of the first quarter.

Without him, the Mavericks went on a 15-0 spurt over the next three minutes to erase the Magic's fast start. Orlando turned it over three times during the run, leading to several easy transition baskets by Dallas.

When Nowitzki returned, the momentum continued as Dallas took a 57-48 advantage into halftime, closing the half making 22 of 32 shots.

"We need everything," Carlisle said. "It's been tough the first 41 (games). I think we're three back, we're in the hunt for the playoffs. That's going to be our motivation. We've got three quality practice days coming up. We've got to make the best of them and we have to keep improving as a team."

NOTES: With Dallas' win, the road team has won each of the last nine meetings in this series. ... The Mavericks had a 48-40 edge on points in the paint. ... Davis was whistled for a technical foul with 9:31 left in the third quarter.

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Follow Kyle Hightower on Twitter at http://www.twitter.com/khightower

Notebook: Mavericks 111, Magic 105

Dick Scanlon, for NBA.com
Posted Sun Jan 20, 2013 10:23 PM - Updated Sun Jan 20, 2013 10:23 PM

THE FACTS: Darren Collison hit a 3-pointer with 31.9 seconds left, joining six Dallas teammates in double figures to help the Mavericks open the second half of their season with a 111-105 victory over the Orlando Magic Sunday.

The Mavericks (18-24) saw a 13-point fourth-quarter lead chopped to two when Collison got open in the corner, took a pass from Vince Carter and nailed the jumper to make it 107-102.

Shawn Marion led the Mavericks with 20 points and 10 rebounds and Carter came off the bench with 15 points and six assists. Glen Davis scored a game-high 24 points and Jameer Nelson added 20 for the Magic (14-26), who lost for the 13th time in 15 games. J.J. Redick had 18 points including a 3-pointer to cut the Dallas lead back to two after Collison's big shot. Dirk Nowitzki and O.J. Mayo then clinched the Mavericks' fifth victory in six games with four free throws.

QUOTABLE: "Biggest play of the game. It was pretty clear at that time we needed to space the floor. Vince [Carter] penetrated and he had three options. Darren [Collison] stepped into that thing with a lot of confidence and he knocked it in. That's a big shot for us, a big shot for him. We really needed that."

--Mavericks coach Rick Carlisle on Collison's big shot

QUOTABLE II: "We put ourselves in position where we were a stop away, and they made a shot. Sometimes it's just that simple."

-- Magic coach Jacque Vaughn

THE STAT: Both teams shot 50 percent or better from the floor. It was the first time that happened all season in a game involving either the Mavericks or the Magic.

TURNING POINT: After the Mavericks fell behind 18-4, Marion scored six points on a 19-2, four-minute spurt on which Dallas went 9-for-11.

HOT: After missing eight of their first 10 shots, the Mavericks shot 70 percent (23-for-33) for the rest of the first half.

QUOTABLE III: "Winning cures a lot. We had a bad atmosphere there for a while when we were losing. The coaches were on the edge and the players were, but when you win it is a lot more fun . . . We had a big week [three wins and an overtime loss] and I think we are only three games out of the eighth spot."

-- Dirk Nowitzki

NOT: Magic guard Arron Afflalo shot 5-for-13 and is shooting 39 percent (35-for-90) in his last six games.

FANTASY SPOTLIGHT: Still a little slow after missing 27 games while recovering from knee surgery, Nowitzki had 12 points, seven rebounds, four assists and three blocks in 32 minutes. Carlisle said he does not expect him to be in peak form until after the All-Star break.

ROOKIE WATCH: Jae Crowder hit a big 3-pointer and a spectacular one-hand putback for the Mavericks. . . . Mo Harkless had three dunks and four rebounds for the Magic. Andrew Nicholson did not play for only for only the second time this season.

NOTABLE: It was the ninth game in 16 days for the Mavericks, who will not play again until Friday. . . . The Magic have lost their last seven games against teams currently holding losing records.

UP NEXT: For the Mavericks, Friday vs. San Antonio, Sunday vs. Phoenix, Tuesday (Jan. 29) @ Portland. For the Magic, Tuesday @ Detroit, Thursday vs. Toronto, Sunday vs. Detroit.

• Mavericks: Beaubois, Cunningham
• Magic: Ayon, Harrington

• Mavericks: --
• Magic: Davis

• Lead Changes: 3
• Times Tied: 1

• Arena: Amway Center, Orlando, FL
• Officials: #10 Ron Garretson, #54 Nick Buchert, #26 Pat Fraher
• Attendance: 18192
• Duration: 2:08