Recap: Raptors 86 at Mavericks 99

Earl K. Sneed recaps the Mavericks' first victory of the season on Friday night, after reserve center Ian Mahinmi's career-high scoring output ruined former assistant coach Dwane Casey return to Dallas.

DALLAS -- Urgency.

Trying to avoid matching the worst start to a season by a defending champion since the 1969-70 Boston Celtics, the Dallas Mavericks took to the court with a greater sense of urgency Friday night. And hoping to avoid a fourth consecutive loss after a last-second defeat in Oklahoma City just 24 hours prior, the reigning titleholders stepped into their home gym ready to welcome back a familiar face.

Formerly the defensive coordinator for the Mavs serving under coach Rick Carlisle, Dwane Casey entered the American Airlines Center as the head man for the Toronto Raptors. And with his former team reeling, Casey showed respect to his former mentor while also admitting that he would like to hang one more loss on the Mavs' record before the champs turn around their luck.

“I think we’re coming in to play against a tough team ... that’s going to have a sense of urgency about them,” Casey said of the Mavs before the game.

He added: “Rick will do a great job of getting them together. It’s a new group putting a new system in. … I don’t feel sorry for Dallas. They have some good pieces that are going to be heard from as they go down the road.”

Unfortunately for Casey, Carlisle and the Mavs would indeed get it together at his expense, downing the Raptors with a 99-86 victory in front of the Dallas faithful.

With Casey very familiar with Carlisle’s system and his returning players from last season’s title run, the Mavericks (1-3) hoped to turn to their many new faces to help get in the win column for the first time this season. But it would be the team’s mainstays from the championship squad that would power an early advantage on the scoreboard, with forward Shawn Marion’s seven first-quarter points and Finals MVP Dirk Nowitzki’s six additional points lifting the Mavs to a 29-23 lead after the opening period.

The Mavs then handed the keys over to the second unit and reserves Jason Terry and Ian Mahinmi drove the team to a double-digit lead in the early stage of the second stanza. While Mahinmi dominated the inside his French countryman Roddy Beaubois worked from the perimeter, giving the Mavs some breathing room when Toronto (1-2) lost guard Jerryd Bayless due to a sprained left ankle.

But Raptors big man Andrea Bargnani righted the ship for his squad with a first-half offensive assault, while former Slam Dunk contestant DeMar DeRozan’s empathic slam highlighted a 10-0 run that got Toronto back even. The duo of Nowitzki and Marion recollected themselves, however, bringing the Mavs to a 50-46 edge at the midway point.

With Bargnani leading all scorers at the break with 18 points on 7-for-8 shooting, the Mavs countered with 12 points from Nowitzki and 10 more from Mahinmi off the bench. And despite being outshot, 48.6 percent to 41.5 percent, the Mavs emerged with a slight advantage after 24 minutes of play thanks to a 25-18 rebounding margin and 7-2 spread in second-chance points.

The second half began with Mavs point guard Jason Kidd answering a 3-pointer by Raptors lead guard Jose Calderon with a triple of his own. But the Raptors refused to be vanquished, with Leandro Barbosa giving them their first lead at 63-61 since an early 12-11 edge in the first quarter.

With his team on its heels, Carlisle got a flashback to last season when the Raptors beat a Nowitzki-less Mavs team at home, 84-76.

"Last year at this time, they beat us here in this game at the AAC. That was a really tough night for us," Carlisle admitted. "It’s a skilled team. Now, as you can see they’re gaining a defensive mentality. Watching their scores, they’re holding teams in the low 40s in field goal percentage, and they’re doing it playing a playoff style. I give Dwane a lot of credit for the approach that he’s taken with that team. It’s the right approach for a young team that’s in a position to make some quantum leaps. For my money, I think they’ll be in the hunt for the playoffs in the East.”

With his team down seven after a 14-0 Toronto run, eight-time All-Star Vince Carter took control from the outside. His former New Jersey teammate followed suit, giving the Mavs the lead back with a three in the midst of a 13-0 Dallas spurt in response. It all amounted to a 77-70 lead for the Mavs entering the game’s final period.

"Tonight wasn’t perfect, we gave up two significant leads. But I thought the key part of the game was the end of the third when we were on a run with Dirk on the bench. That gives us a huge lift," Carlisle explained.

Looking to close Casey and the visitors out, the Mavs went to their fourth-quarter scoring duo of Nowitzki and Terry early in the last period to create some distance on the scoreboard. But instead of the two veterans it would be the Mavs’ young French contributors putting the finishing touches on the win, with Mahinmi occupying the painted area while Beaubois relieved Kidd in the backcourt the rest of the way.

Bargnani led four Raptors in double figures with a game-high 30 points on 11-for-17 from the floor. Barbosa added 20 points to lead Toronto’s bench.

Off the bench, Mahinmi led the way with career-high 19 points, five boards and two blocked shots.

“Tonight, I was just trying to make plays. Obviously, we were on a losing streak, and I did everything I could out there to get that win,” Mahinmi modestly said. "Tonight, I did a pretty good job at that. I knew exactly what I was supposed to do on the pick-and-roll. That’s really one of the things I like to do is play pick-and roll defense, so I just want to do it and execute it exactly the way they had it on the plan.”

"I know this was a career-high in points for [Mahinmi], but the last two nights he’s given us a really high level of energy," Carlisle said. "He’s given us a physical presence, he’s a combative guy and he was really big tonight. It wasn’t just the points, it was defensively in the right place. He’s aggressive, he’s talking, he’s making great strides and I thought really he and Beaubois were really key guys on the second night of a back-to-back being able to finish the game. We didn’t have to finish those last three minutes with Dirk out there or Jason Kidd. It really helps as we go forward.”

Resting most of the fourth, Nowitzki finished with 18 points on 7-for-16 shooting. Terry added 17 points, Marion finished with 12 and Carter contributed 10 more off the pine. Meanwhile, Kidd filled up the stat sheet with nine points, seven rebounds and six assists.

Despite being outshot, 45.8 percent to 44.4 percent, the Mavs capitalized off 17 Toronto turnovers, turning the giveaways into 22 Dallas points at the other end. The Mavs also finished with a 56-26 advantage in bench scoring.

“We’re playing better basketball. The first couple of games were horrible. … The last couple of games are games we can build on. Games are going to be hard all year. Tonight is probably a template for how we’re going to have to play a lot of nights.”

The Mavs now head to Minnesota for a New Year’s Day matchup with the Timberwolves, in a game that will air on Fox Sports Southwest at 6 p.m. CT.

Note: The team returns to Dallas to face off with the Oklahoma City Thunder next Monday night, looking to avenge Thursday night’s 104-102 road loss. Tickets still are still available and can be purchased by calling (214) 747-6287.

Single-game tickets are on sale and available at the American Airlines Center North Box Office, online at mavs.com, via phone by calling 214-747-MAVS or 1-800-4NBA-TIX and all Ticketmaster outlets (Fiesta Grocery Stores, Wal-Mart, Simon Mall in Garland and the Shops at Willow Bend in Plano).

Rivalry Pack: Aside from being a season ticket holder, the only way for Mavs fans to attend either of the two Los Angeles Lakers games is through the Rivalry Pack. Tickets to the Feb.22 and March 21 games vs. the Los Angeles Lakers can be purchased as part of a three-game package that includes one (1) of the three premium games and two (2) additional regular season games.

RPL Nights: RPL Nights return for the sixth season and will feature special discounted tickets for 10 pre-selected games. Tickets normally priced $9 will be $2, $15 will be $10, $31 will be $20 and $42 will be $32.