Inside Report: Mavericks-Rockets preview — Mavs push towards West's No. 2 seed, try to sweep Rockets

Earl K. Sneed previews the Mavericks' Monday night matchup with the Rockets, as the team from Big D tries to take a hold of the No. 2 seed while bidding to sweep their in-state rivals.

HOUSTON — It’s been a long and winding road, but now the Mavericks are exactly where they thought they’d be at this point in the season, entering Monday night’s matchup with the Houston Rockets in position to claim the No. 2 seed in the Western Conference playoff picture.

Tied with the two-time defending champion Los Angeles Lakers, who own the tiebreaker, the Mavericks (55-25) know that the task is simple, needing to only win one more game than the reigning champs in the final two outings for both squads. And with the Oklahoma City Thunder nipping at the heels of both Dallas and L.A., sitting just a game behind in the standings after routing the Lakers — losers of five straight — at the Staples Center, 120-106, the Mavericks know that they could easily fall from No. 2 to No. 4 if they don’t finish off the final two games of the regular season in winning fashion.

“Look, we’re trying to win games,” Mavericks coach Rick Carlisle said. “We’re trying to hang in there for second on the off chance that could happen, and philosophically we’re trying to win.”

That means that much like the first three times the Mavs faced the Rockets they can’t take their in-state rivals lightly, as the Dallas team concludes its final back-to-back of the season looking for a four-game season series sweep in the Toyota Center. The Mavericks will also try to continue the momentum of back-to-back double-figure wins, including Sunday’s 115-90 victory over Phoenix, who joined the L.A. Clippers as the second team (third overall) in consecutive games to be swept in all four showdowns against Dallas in the 2010-11 campaign.

“For us, it’s about rhythm, it’s about flow and how we move the ball offensively and how we fly around defensively,” sixth man Jason Terry explained. “And [Sunday night] we showed a great example of it. Phoenix wasn’t playing for much, but it’s not about them, it’s about us and how we approach every game.”

The Mavs approach Monday night’s contest hoping to down their third straight opponent to a fourth loss at their hands when the Rockets welcome in their neighbors to the north trying to spoil Dallas’ party, after being left out in the cold and on the outside looking into the playoff chase while sitting in the ninth spot in the conference standings.

Knowing that the Rockets rank third in the entire league as a team in scoring, putting up 105.9 points a game, the Mavericks anticipate being in a good, old-fashioned Texas shootout. And although the Rockets could be down two starters, Luis Scola (sore left knee) and Kyle Lowry (sore left foot), the Mavs realize that ending their three-game road losing skid won’t be easy.

“[The Rockets] can score and they were one of the teams fighting on the outside in the nine position trying to make a run at it,” Mavericks point guard Jason Kidd said. “So, we’re looking to face a team that can put up a lot of points.”

But Carlisle remains confident that his team can continue to build off its last two wins, which came in response to a four-game losing streak. And after seeing plenty of offensive success against the Suns, including five scorers in double figures and 51 percent shooting with Kidd, who scored seven points and dished out seven assists, back in the lineup following a two-game stint in which he sat out and rested, the coach says that he expects plenty of good things to continue to happen as long as the veteran lead guard is running the show.

“Jason Kidd played, that helped a lot. I thought everyone played well. We didn’t always make shots, but we played hard and played together, and we had good balance. All those things are important,” Carlisle explained.

The coach adds, however, that he’d like to give the 38-year-old Kidd one more day off in the final two games, whether that’s on Monday night against the Rockets or Wednesday night in the season finale at home against New Orleans. But with the Thunder chomping at their heels and the Lakers free-falling downward and creating an opportunity to grab the second seed, Kidd says that he is more focused on helping his team than he is resting at this stage.

“The plan was maybe to sit [Monday], but I don’t think I got enough work in. So, we’ll see and we’ll talk about it,” Kidd explained. “Looking back at last year, I played a lot of minutes. And understanding we executed the game plan, having a week [of rest], it came at a good time after six in 10 days. And now we have two left before we get done with this dress rehearsal, so the real season starts on Saturday or Sunday.”

Note: The fourth Mavericks-Rockets matchup of the season will tip off at 7:30 p.m. CT on Monday night, airing locally on Fox Sports Southwest.

The Mavs conclude the regular season against the New Orleans Hornets on Wednesday night in a potential playoff preview. The Mavs lead the season series 2-1. The fourth Hornets-Mavericks matchup of the season will tip off at 7 p.m. CT, airing nationally on ESPN and locally on Fox Sports Southwest. Great seats are still available and tickets can be purchased by visiting the American Airlines Center box office, logging on to Mavs.com or by calling 214-747-MAVS (6287).

Single-game tickets for the first two Mavs home games of the First Round of the 2011 NBA Playoffs are now on sale. Fans that purchase single-game tickets will receive a commemorative 2011 Mavs Playoff ticket*, which will allow the fans to experience augmented reality, a new technology that will bring the ticket to life with animated Mavs players including Dirk Nowitzki, Jason Kidd and Jason Terry. Game day and commemorative tickets will go live when the 2011 Playoffs begin.

Tickets will be available online at mavs.com, via phone (214-747-6287 or 1-800-4NBA-TIX) and the American Airlines Center® North Box Office**. Ticket prices start at $15 and up and there is an eight ticket limit per game. Tickets are also sold at all Ticketmaster outlets (Fiesta Grocery Stores, Simon Mall in Garland and Shops at Willow Bend).

Fans that purchase single game tickets at the American Airlines Center® North Box Office will receive their commemorative ticket at that time. For those purchasing online or at a Ticketmaster outlet, commemorative tickets will be available to pick up at the American Airlines Center® North Box Office or on Playoff game nights at the Mavs ticket sales table on the main concourse near the North Box Office. Augmented Reality is available only on Android phones. For more information, go to http://www.nba.com/mavericks/ar/ar.html.

Individual game tickets are on sale now. Tickets can be purchased at the American Airlines Center box office, on Mavs.com or by calling 214-747-MAVS (6287). Get in on the action and be there for all the thrills!

Fans can visit Mavs.com or call 214.747.MAVS for more information and a complete listing of regular-season home games.