Joy Nelson underwent successful surgery for breast cancer. Doctors believe they removed all the cancer and that she will be fine. Husband Don Nelson missed Monday's New Jersey game and Tuesday' Houston game to be with his wife. He is rejoining the team for Thursday's Denver game. Donn Nelson filled in as head coach for the 2 games. Dallas hired Sary Benzvi as a player development coach. Benzvi speaks Chinese and will be able to translate instructions to Wang Zhizhi. With the win vs New Jersey, Dallas reached the halfway mark of the season with a record of 29-12. It is the best record Dallas has ever had at midseason. Dallas went 28-13 in 87-88. 29 wins is also more than Dallas compiled in 10 complete seasons - 2 in the 80s and 8 in the 90s. Greg Buckner suffered a strained left calf muscle 6 minutes into the New Jersey game and did not return in the game (came out of halftime in a suit). He missed the Houston game due to the injury and may be out a week. Dallas at Memphis (January 17) All talk about the upcoming game went out the window when Dirk Nowitzki came out of the locker room with a buzz cut. Nowitzki had hair when he was out shooting 30 minutes earlier, but decided it was in his eyes and he wanted to get rid of it. Eduardo Najera gets credit for the shearing. The hair was collected and the Mavs actually made use of it. The hair was placed in baggies and auctioned off during the New Jersey game with proceeds going to cancer research in Joy Nelson's name. Dallas scored the first 7 points of the quarter, but Memphis answered with 9-2 run and the game stayed within 4 points the rest of the quarter. Dallas led 29-27 after 1. Memphis tied the game at 29-29 with 11:20 remaining, but Tim Hardaway hit a 3-pointer and Dallas held a single-digit lead the rest of the quarter as neither team had a real rally in the quarter. Dallas led 55-49 at the half. Memphis tied the game and got within 1 point twice in the 3rd quarter, but were unable to take a lead. Dallas led 62-61 with 5:40 to go and Dallas went on an 13-3 run to go up 75-64 with 2 minutes left. Dirk Nowitzki hit a 3-pointer and 2 free throws at the end of the quarter and Dallas led 82-68 after 3. Nowitzki had 11 points in the quarter. Shane Battier left the game with a strained left groin during the 3rd quarter and did not return. A goaltending call on Stromile Swift gave Dallas their largest lead at 84-68 with 11:50 remaining. Dallas led 90-78 with 8 minutes to go, but Memphis used a 9-2 run, capped by a 3-pointer by Jason Williams, to pull within 87-92 with 6:15 left. Nowitzki hit a jumper and Dallas twice stole the ball from Swift when he was trying to post up and Adrian Griffin scored on layups on the two fast breaks and Dallas led 98-87 with 4:20 left. Memphis could get no closer than 8 points the rest of the way. Tim Hardaway made a long 3-pointer as the shot clock was running out with 6 seconds left in the game and Dallas won 108-97. Unlike the shoot-out Atlanta game, Dallas played more of an inside game as Dirk Nowitzki and others drove to the basket and posted up a lot. The fuzzed haired Nowitzki was Dallas' high man with 32 points including 12-13 FT and 6 rebounds. Steve Nash had a double-double with 20 points and 10 assists and also had 7 rebounds and 3 steals. Adrian Griffin had 10 points on 5-7 FG and Johnny Newman started and had 11 points in 19 minutes. Juwan Howard was the only starter not in double-digits with just 6 points on 3-10 FG and 6 rebounds. Greg Buckner was the high rebounder with 9 and also had 7 points. Memphis was led by rookie Pau Gasol's 26 points and 11 rebounds. Jason Williams, as erratic as ever, had 16 points including 5-14 FG and 3-9 3-pointers, 8 assists, and 3 steals. Rodney Buford looked nice with 15 points including 6-9 FG and 5 rebounds. Stromile Swift had 12 points and 5 rebounds and Brevin Knight had 12 points on 6-8 FG. Quotes Don Nelson: "I like the Grizzlies. They really run good stuff and their coaches do a good job of running a very intricate offense. I steal some of their stuff, that's how good it is. In fact, I put a play in today, watching their stuff, it's so good. And we scored on it. I just think they're a good up-and-coming team." Nelson on Nowitzki: "He got a lot of touches in a lot of situations. He'll get those numbers no matter what." Dirk Nowitzki: "We're still not doing a good job of putting teams away early. That's dangerous. You keep teams hanging around and they make a couple of shots, especially at home with the crowd going, and they're right back in the game." Nowitzki: "With Mike out, I'm getting a lot of touches and a lot of shots. But our strength is we all can score." Nowitzki on shaving his hair: "During warmups, it was in my face. I was actually planning on doing it a little while ago, but it happened today. I don't really care about hair; it doesn't really matter. I didn't like it before and I don't like it now. But it's easier to handle now, that's for sure. You don't have to spend as much time in front of the mirror. I think I'm going to keep it short for a while." Steve Nash: "I think we got timely stops. They played fairly well, but we got stops when it really counted, and that was the difference in the game." Nash: "We created some turnovers and we got out and ran. That's something our team really flourishes in, the running game. So we try to get out and run a little bit. We're a lot better team when we play that way." Nash on Nowitzki's hair: "He's been talking about it for a while and he cut it off today." Nash on if he'd go the crew-cut look: "I look just as silly as Dirk with short hair." Sidney Lowe: "Our transition defense was terrible. You can't give them 21 transition [points]. It's thinking about [getting back] and giving the effort." Lowe on losing Battier: "Losing Shane for the rest of the game affected us a great deal. With one of our scorers gone we had to go deeper into the bench, which changed the rotation." Pau Gasol: "We failed a little bit and we allowed too many fast break points and they executed." Gasol on losing Battier: "He's a hustle guy. We always need him." Brevin Knight: "When they are making jump shots, they're tough to beat." Rodney Buford: "We took quick shots and let them get back in transition. But we didn't get back. We jogged back. And when that happens, you're not going to win games." Buford on losing Battier: "Everything goes through Shane, so we're going to have to find a different game plan. He brings a lot of energy and hard work and we have to pick up where he left off." Dallas Mavericks 108, Memphis Grizzlies 97 at Memphis (January 17) 1st 2nd 3rd 4th - Final 2FG 3FG FG% FT% Dallas 29 26 27 26 - 108 .455 .563 .476 .808 Memphis 27 22 19 29 - 97 .559 .313 .507 .762 Halftime: Dallas 55-49 3rd Q: Dallas 82-68 Technicals: none Refs: Joey Crawford, Blane Reichelt, Kevin Fehr Attendance: 12,732 (cap 19,342) Did not play due to injury: Nick Anderson (flu), Isaac Austin (right patella tendinitis) Dallas Mavericks REB Player MIN FGM-FGA 3PM-3PA FTM-FTA PTS O-T AST TO PF STL BLK Adrian Griffin 33 5-7 0-0 0-0 10 0-3 1 1 2 3 0 Juwan Howard 23 3-10 0-0 0-0 6 3-6 0 4 2 1 0 Dirk Nowitzki 44 9-20 2-2 12-13 32 2-6 1 1 3 1 1 Steve Nash 37 8-14 0-2 4-4 20 2-7 10 4 3 3 0 Johnny Newman 19 3-5 3-4 2-4 11 0-2 0 0 2 1 0 Tim Hardaway 29 3-8 2-4 0-0 8 0-1 6 0 3 0 0 Greg Buckner 27 3-9 0-2 1-2 7 4-9 2 0 3 1 1 Eduardo Najera 21 2-5 0-0 2-3 6 3-3 1 2 2 1 0 Wang Zhizhi 7 3-4 2-2 0-0 8 0-2 0 0 1 0 0 Totals 48 39-82 9-16 21-26 108 14-39 21 12 21 11 2 Memphis Grizzlies REB Player MIN FGM-FGA 3PM-3PA FTM-FTA PTS O-T AST TO PF STL BLK Pau Gasol 37 10-18 0-1 6-7 26 4-11 2 3 2 0 1 Grant Long 37 2-6 0-0 2-2 6 1-3 3 2 0 1 1 Tony Massenburg 21 2-3 0-0 2-2 6 3-4 0 1 4 0 0 Shane Battier 16 2-6 0-1 0-0 4 1-3 2 1 1 1 1 Jason Williams 39 5-14 3-9 3-4 16 0-4 8 4 4 3 0 Stromile Swift 29 5-9 0-0 2-4 12 1-5 1 2 2 2 3 Rodney Buford 37 6-9 2-3 1-2 15 0-5 0 1 2 1 0 Brevin Knight 21 6-8 0-0 0-0 12 0-1 4 1 5 2 0 Will Solomon 3 0-2 0-2 0-0 0 0-0 1 1 1 0 0 Totals 48 38-75 5-16 16-21 97 10-36 21 16 21 10 6 Utah at Dallas (January 19) Utah came out of the gate missing their first 9 shots and Dallas shot out to a 17-3 lead with 6:30 remaining. Dallas led in the teens the rest of the quarter. DeShawn Stevenson had a slam dunk with 3 seconds left and Dallas led 32-16 after 1. Dallas shot 11-19 FG and Utah shot just 5-20 FG. Utah's shooting improved only slightly in the 2nd quarter, but Dallas' shooting went down some and their lead remained in the teens. Dallas led 58-44 at the half. Dirk Nowitzki had 17 points including 6-8 FG. It was the same story for the 3rd quarter with Dallas' lead in the teens the entire quarter. Tim Hardaway hit a 3-pointer with 32 seconds left and Dallas led 81-67 after 3. Nowitzki had 11 points in the quarter. The 4th quarter was not the same story as Utah scored the first 7 points to pull within 74-81 with 9:50 to go. Dallas answered with a 12-2 run, capped by a 3-pointer by Adrian Griffin, to go up 93-76 with 6:50 remaining. Dallas led 99-84 with 3:30 to go and Dallas started making bone-head plays as Steve Nash and Adrian Griffin on consecutive possessions tried to score individually only 13 seconds into the shot clock to try to get the infamous chalupa bucket (100 points). Utah took full advantage of Dallas not using the full shot clock and going away from the team game by scoring the next 10 points to pull within 94-99 with 1:45 remaining. Nash passed to Griffin on the baseline who drove for the layup to finally end Dallas' drought, but John Stockton answered with a 3-pointer and Dallas led just 101-97 with 1:10 remaining. Nowitzki turned the ball over, but Andrei Kirilenko missed inside. Nash was fouled and hit 1 of 2 free throws with 40 seconds left. Bryon Russell drove for the quick 2 with 40 seconds remaining. Utah did not intentionally foul and Steve Nash drove to towards the basket and elevated for one of his floaters. Scott Padgett slid in front of Nash while Nash was in the air. Nash's floater went in but the refs made a bad call by calling Nash for an offensive foul with 19 seconds remaining and Dallas up by just 3. Utah could not get a good look at a 3-pointer, so Karl Malone settled for the layup with 9 seconds left. Nowitzki was immediately fouled and he hit both free throws to give Dallas a 104-11 lead with 7 seconds left. Russell was short on a 3-pointer, but Malone grabbed the rebound and laid the ball in with 1.7 seconds left. Nowitzki hit 2 more free throws with 1.2 seconds left and Utah used their last timeout. Stockton's 3-pointer clanked off the rim at the buzzer. Dallas won 106-103. Phew. You leave the door open a crack and a veteran team like (most of) Utah will likely take advantage of it. Dallas was the better team for most of the night, but did not put Utah away and was lucky to hang on to the win. Utah shot 14-22 FG in the 4th quarter while Dallas shot just 8-22 FG. Dallas actually controlled the boards by out-rebounding Utah 47-38, but Utah handled the ball better as they only committed 8 turnovers while Dallas committed a very high for them 17 turnovers (averaging 12.1 for the season). It was a 3-headed monster for Dallas with only 3 players in double-digits. Dirk Nowitzki had 34 points on 9-14 FG, 4-5 3-pointers, and 12-12 FT and 8 rebounds. Steve Nash had 23 points, 6 rebounds, and 9 assists, but committed a season high 7 turnovers. The surprising 3rd scorer was Adrian Griffin with 18 points including 7-11 FG - and 7 of his points came in the 4th quarter. Juwan Howard had a miserable game with 2 points on 1-12 FG and 8 rebounds, but he did do a decent job defending Karl Malone for 3 quarters. Tim Hardaway joined Howard with the cold hand with just 5 points including 1-7 FG and 1-5 3-pointers. Utah was led by Karl Malone's 28 points, 7 rebounds, and 5 assists. Malone was key to Utah's comeback with 16 points including 6-8 FG in the 4th quarter. John Stockton had 24 points, including 9 in the 4th quarter, 5 rebounds, 9 assists, and 3 steals. Scott Padgett gave Utah a nice boast off the bench with 17 points, 9 rebounds, and 5 assists. The officiating in this game was terrible across the board (and I was saying this throughout the game, even when Dallas was up big). The good news is that they were not bias towards either team. The bad news was that there was no telling when they would decide something was a violation. They would sometimes allow very physical play under the basket and then turn around on the very next possession and call a touch foul. There were at least 4 blatant travels that were not called [and so you don't think I was watching purely with rose colored glasses, one of them was a 3-step long drive by Nowitzki]. And don't even get me started on that terrible offensive foul called on Nash with 19 seconds left - Nash was in the air when Padgett set in front of him. As it took 2 points off Dallas' board and gave Utah the ball only down by 3 points, that blown call could have effective the outcome of the game. Fortunately it did not. Quotes Don Nelson: "We were very fortunate to win tonight. They are a very good team down the stretch. Things happen when you play veteran teams and they know how to stay in there and make their runs. Thank goodness we had a cushion because we weren't very good in the 4th quarter, mainly on the defensive end. I can take missing shots, as long as you are smart and run the ball and take good shots. I am very disappointed with the team that was in there. Defensively I thought I had my best players in there. We just gave up too many baskets in the 4th quarter too quickly and as a result we had to fight for our lives." Nelson: "They are not an easy team to put away. I think we have done a good job this year in protecting our leads. I don't think there is a better team in the league when they are ahead in the 4th quarter that has a better record than we do. I don't want to take anything away from them. I always thought Jerry Sloan was the best coach in the league and I still think that. I have admired him for years. I wish I was as good as coach as he is." Nelson: "I was uneasy about the game the whole day. Even though we had a 17-point lead, I was uneasy about the game. I kept saying, 'That's 17, isn't it?' That's the good news. The bad news is I was still uneasy." Nelson on Howard: "He had a tough night offensively. He did a really good job on Malone until the 4th quarter. If that game could have ended in the 3rd quarter, Juwan would have gotten the game ball. I probably over played Juwan. I went into this game thinking I was going to play Bradley." Nelson on missing the next 2 games to be with his wife, who will be undergoing breast cancer surgery: "I'll take a couple of days off, and I think it's good because I didn't feel I did a very good job down the stretch. It's been kind of difficult to concentrate the way I need to because of my wife's situation. It will be good to have Donnie take over and get this team back to where it should be." Dirk Nowitzki: "We made a lot of mental errors and they're a smart team. They know how to stay in the game and we almost blew it." Greg Buckner: "We almost gave the game away tonight. Utah has a lot of veterans and you expect them to make a run and they made a huge run in the 4th quarter, but we found a way to hang on for the win. Luckily we won and made big shots when we had to. Steve, Dirk, and Griff really stepped it up tonight." Buckner: "We almost gave it away. But we found a way to hang on - luckily." Buckner: "Normally when we out-rebound teams we win. Rebounding is usually our Achilles heal and when we rebound well we're a pretty good team." Buckner: "We have to improve on keeping a lead. When you have a team down by 17 points, even though it was Utah, you still have to find a way to keep the lead and not let it come down to a one possession game like it did tonight." Adrian Griffin: "We made some mental errors, especially myself, down the last few minutes of the game which allowed them to get back into the game. You can't do that against a veteran team because they know what to do in the clutch. We're fortunate to pull this one out." Griffin: "We played a good team tonight and were happy with the win. We made a few defensive errors tonight late in the game, but hopefully we can correct them by next game." Griffin: "You really can't go wrong by taking it hard to the basket late in the game. Hopefully you can get fouled or make an assist or finish the play." Jerry Sloan: "Well, we didn't come to play. We just came out there and showed up and they kicked our rear ends all over the gym. We looked like we were bored with being here. They missed some shots down there near the end and let us back into it but we missed enough layups in the 1st half, we couldn't move our bodies. Even our young players looked like they had a difficult time moving their bodies. They probably needed more time off - this NBA is a tough business. When you have to play every other day and you don't have the energy to show up and play, I guess they need more time off. I guess the game isn't really not that important. Until they realize that, they're just going to be another guy playing this game." Sloan: "They are a terrific team. You've got to bring everything you have to beat them." Sloan on the comeback: "Well, they missed some shots but we finally started pushing the ball and running down the floor. We could never run through our offense. Our guys were standing around. They were so physical with us and our guys accepted that. And when you play that way, you might as well play give-a-way. Because all you are relying on is one pass because of the 24 second clock. Until we started running a little bit and pushing the ball, they were playing in a rocking chair." Sloan: "That was another dramatic finish we tried to come up with again this season, but we're something like 0-7 on dramatic finishes this season so that is not real rewarding." Karl Malone: "I still think we can beat these teams if we play our game and don't dig ourselves such a big hole." John Stockton on the comeback: "We played good defense, we got into the open court, and we executed. Same old story. But we've got to find a way to do it for 48 minutes." Scott Padgett: "We kind of waited too late. We didn't make any shots the whole game. We missed a lot of open shots. We had some layups and open 15-footers that we missed. At the end we started making shots and we got a couple of stops. When it came down to it, they just made enough plays to win the game. They have so many offensive weapons. Especially when it means that we have to foul them. They can put 4 or 5 guys in there that shoot 80%. Nash and Nowitzki never miss. But we still had a chance to tie it at the end." Padgett: "We waited too long. We got in too big of a hole against them, and they're a great team. You can't dig yourself 18-, 20-point holes against teams as good as Dallas." John Starks: "We kept their lead under 20 and kept fighting to give ourselves a chance to win. We just started pushing the ball a little harder in the 2nd half. We had trouble with their pick-and-roll. This team will run you death with Nash and Nowitzki. But I thought in the later part of the 3rd quarter we started to defend it a little better. And then they started missing shots. I think they got a little tired too. John and Karl did a good job of keeping the pressure on them." Dallas Mavericks 106, Utah Jazz 103 at Dallas (January 19) 1st 2nd 3rd 4th - Final 2FG 3FG FG% FT% Dallas 32 26 23 25 - 106 .424 .529 .447 .879 Utah 16 28 23 36 - 103 .471 .316 .437 .750 Halftime: Dallas 58-44 3rd Q: Dallas 81-67 Technicals: John Stockton 6:54 1st, Tim Hardaway 11:33 2nd, Utah defensive 3 seconds 8:23 2nd, Dallas defensive 3 seconds 0:18 3rd, Juwan Howard 5:02 4th Refs: Bob Delaney, Derrick Stafford, Leroy Richardson Attendance: 20,146 (sellout) Did not play due to injury: John Crotty (left knee tendinitis), Donyell Marshall (bruised right hip) Dallas Mavericks REB Player MIN FGM-FGA 3PM-3PA FTM-FTA PTS O-T AST TO PF STL BLK Greg Buckner 34 3-5 0-0 2-4 8 5-9 0 2 4 0 0 Juwan Howard 36 1-12 0-0 0-0 2 2-8 1 0 4 1 1 Dirk Nowitzki 43 9-14 4-5 12-12 34 0-8 3 3 2 0 0 Adrian Griffin 36 7-11 2-2 2-2 18 0-4 2 1 2 1 0 Steve Nash 39 8-19 1-4 6-7 23 3-6 9 7 2 1 0 Tim Hardaway 14 1-7 1-5 2-2 5 0-2 0 1 2 0 0 Eduardo Najera 23 2-4 0-0 0-0 4 4-9 2 2 3 0 0 Johnny Newman 5 0-0 0-0 3-4 3 0-0 0 0 2 0 0 Wang Zhizhi 10 3-4 1-1 2-2 9 1-1 0 0 1 0 1 Totals 48 34-76 9-17 29-33 106 15-47 17 17 22 3 2 Utah Jazz REB Player MIN FGM-FGA 3PM-3PA FTM-FTA PTS O-T AST TO PF STL BLK Karl Malone 40 10-19 0-0 8-9 28 2-7 5 2 5 2 1 Andrei Kirilenko 37 4-10 0-1 4-6 12 4-7 0 2 2 2 2 Jarron Collins 16 1-3 0-0 3-4 5 2-2 0 0 4 0 0 John Stockton 36 9-19 2-4 4-5 24 2-5 9 3 4 3 1 DeShawn Stevenson 24 5-9 1-2 0-0 11 0-0 1 0 1 0 3 Bryon Russell 34 1-8 0-3 1-2 3 0-5 2 0 4 1 0 John Starks 20 1-6 0-3 1-2 3 1-3 3 1 4 0 0 Scott Padgett 33 7-13 3-6 0-0 17 4-9 5 0 2 0 0 Totals 48 38-87 6-19 21-28 103 15-38 25 8 26 8 7 New Jersey at Dallas (January 21) New Jersey led 4-0 9:45 in to the game and Dallas went on a 15-2 run as New Jersey missed 8 of 9 shots and Dallas led 15-6 with 5:45 remaining. Dallas continued to build on their lead and led 30-17 after 1. Dirk Nowitzki had 10 points. Greg Buckner strained his left calf midway through the 1st quarter and did not return. New Jersey opened the 2nd quarter with a 10-4 run to pull within 27-34 with 9:50 left and it was not going to be as easy of a game as the 1st quarter seemed it would be. New Jersey went on an 11-2 run, capped by 2 jumpers and a 3-pointer by Lucious Harris, to pull within 44-45 with 3:45 to go. Dallas was able to hang on to a single-digit lead and Steve Nash got a layup with 2 seconds left and Dallas led 56-49 at the half. Harris had 10 points in the quarter and Nowitzki had 13 points to up his total to 23 points for the half. New Jersey opened the 3rd quarter with a 10-1 run as Dallas missed on 4 attempts and New Jersey led 59-57 with 9:20 to go. The teams traded buckets twice and then New Jersey led the rest of the quarter. New Jersey scored 8 consecutive points to go up 72-63 with 5:25 left. During the run, Shawn Bradley went to block a Kenyon Martin dunk attempt and was called for the flagrant foul. It was a completely bogus call - Bradley was going for the ball, was coming from in front of Martin (not from behind or to the side, which can be dangerous), and actually got the block as well as the body contact (no argument that it was a foul, just that it wasn't flagrant). Dallas scored 7 straight points to pull within 78-79 with 1:40 to go. New Jersey led 81-80 after 3. Martin had 12 points and Todd MacCulloch had 11 points in the quarter. Dallas only shot 6-20 FG in the 3rd quarter. Wang Zhizhi opened the 4th with a layup and the lead would see-saw over the next 4 minutes. New Jersey scored 9 straight points, capped by a 3-pointer by Harris, to go up 99-92 with 6 minutes left. But Dallas scored the next 7 points to go up 100-99 with 4:25 remaining. Martin hit 1 of 2 free throws and Nowitzki scored the next 7 points to give Dallas a 107-100 lead with 1:09 to go. New Jersey continued to miss shots and Nash hit 2 free throws with 47 seconds remaining to give Dallas a comfortable lead. Jason Kidd hit a 3-pointer, his first points of the game after missing on 15 attempts, with 25 seconds left to end New Jersey's streak of 13 missed field goal attempts, but it was too late as Nash hit 4 more free throws to seal the game. Dallas won 113-105. It was a tough, exciting game and, fortunately, New Jersey got cold down the stretch and Dallas was able to hit their free throws. Besides their cold shooting, New Jersey was hurt by getting in the penalty with about 4:30 left as Dallas was playing aggressive in attacking the basket. Dallas shot 17-19 FT in the 4th quarter. Dallas was led by Dirk Nowitzki with 39 points on 11-27 FG and 16-18 FT and 13 rebounds. Nowitzki went through a slump where he missed 8 straight shots in the 3rd quarter and into the 4th quarter. He lived from the line where 12 of his 16 points in the 2nd half came from free throws. His bobble-head night found the reappearance of Juwan Howard's game. Howard had 22 points and 12 rebounds. Steve Nash may have struggled from the field (5-14 FG - shooting 49.3% for the season), but he was chasing Jason Kidd all night and had some hand in Kidd's poor outing. Nash had 19 points. Eduardo Najera's line of 7 points, 7 rebounds, and 6 assists does not show what he meant in this game. The steals were key as were his usual hustle. He had a great snag of a rebound off of a Kerry Kittle's miss with 1:30 left in the game. Tim Hardaway had 8 points on 3-9 FG and 2-7 3-pointers and 6 assists. Jason Kidd had an absolutely terrible night vs Dallas. He may have had 15 assists and 8 rebounds, but his team need more from him (or less shooting) than 1-17 FG and 1-7 3-pointers with the 1 make coming after the game was practically decided. He also turned the ball over 6 times. The hot had was the other former Mav, Lucious Harris. Sweet Lou had 23 points including 9-13 FG. Kenyon Martin enjoyed his homecoming with 21 points including 7-11 FT and 6 rebounds. Keith Van Horn had a double-double with 13 points and 15 rebounds. New Jersey had balanced scoring with 6 players in double-digits (Todd MacCulloch 13 points, Aaron Williams 13 points, and Richard Jefferson 12 points being the 3 others), but Dallas won with just 3 in double-digits and the win is all that counts. This was the first game of two that head coach Don Nelson missed to be with his wife, who is recovering from breast cancer surgery. Donn Nelson filled in as coach. For the 2nd game in a row, the refs did a terrible job. For 3 quarters, the officiating seemed lopsided against Dallas. There were many examples of blown calls/non-calls, but 2 that stick out was the flagrant on Bradley and the non-goaltending call on a Wang Zhizhi shot where Wang was fouled and his shot was blocked on the way down. The Mavs asked the league to review the flagrant foul and the league ruled that Bradley will not be assessed a flagrant foul point (basically saying it was not a flagrant). I had a laugh in the middle of the 4th quarter when a Mav player was called for a foul and I realized that it was Dallas' first team foul of the quarter - I commented to my dad, "If we're complaining about the refs, imagine what New Jersey fans are doing." Quotes Donn Nelson: "We played one heck of a team tonight. I can see why they are the best in the East. They were unfortunate that Jason had a less than stellar shooting performance, otherwise we probably wouldn't have won." Nelson: "As far as the win goes, I feel real good about our team. Steve had an off night. They did some pretty nice defensive things against our pick-and-roll which forced us to probe some different areas." Nelson: "It was like a layup drill for a while and it was frustrating because I didn't know how to stop the bleeding. I played small. I played tall. I used Dirk at 5. I used him at 3. I was pushing buttons like crazy, like a captain of a ship with the fortress going down." Nelson on Howard: "Juwan really helped us in the key. I have 5 game balls and one definitely goes to Juwan. One goes to Eddie Najera who scrambled, got loose balls, rebounded, and ran the floor. I couldn't keep him off the court. Tim Hardaway gets one for guidance and made some big baskets down the stretch." Nelson on defense: "We are a lot better team than people give us credit for. It didn't surprise me at all that Dirk's defense has gotten better since he has been in the league. Steve's always been a very underrated defender. The rest of the guys just picked it up. Buck gave us what he gave us until he went down. Everyone had a hand in this. Shawn didn't do anything spectacular, but he got us some layups." Dirk Nowitzki: "At the beginning of the game they were playing good defense on me. They tried to take me out of the game and I just had to stay aggressive at the end and get my rhythm back. I tried to get to the foul line as much as possible. That's what I tried to do and it worked out well enough to get the win, but I didn't play a great game." Nowitzki on his 2nd half struggles: "Man, I should have had 50 today. It was brutal. I couldn't make outside shots or finish around the basket." Nowitzki: "I just stayed aggressive and got my rhythm back in the end. It's nice to know that we can finish games off at the end." Nowitzki on New Jersey: "They have a great team. They have all they need with Jason and they have a lot of shooters out there on the court. They are very athletic and also have good inside people. They have a very nice squad and we have a lot of respect for them. We knew it wasn't going to be easy, but we hung in there and got the win today." Nowitzki on missing Finley: "We all have to share our shots a little more. But we're hoping that Finley's coming back soon, especially when we play out west and that's when we are really going to need him." Steve Nash: "Juwan and Eduardo stepped up and a bunch of guys really had some key performances and key plays for us. Dirk really carried us today. It was a good win for us. I felt tired the whole day, the whole game. I really couldn't get into it. I kind of struggled, but in the end everyone made enough big plays and we got through it." Nash: "Jason's a great player. Even when he shoots the ball like he did tonight, he still has a big impact on the game and he was a big reason why their team got back into the game in the 3rd quarter." Juwan Howard: "We talked about in the pregame how we had to stop [Kidd] and as a collective unit we did a good job." Byron Scott: "We just eventually boiled down to the end - we missed some shots and we got into the penalty early. That put us in a big time bind. They got guys that can make some shots and can make free throws. You get into some trouble when you have some good shooters like that going to the line on every foul with a lot of time to play." Scott: "Any time your backcourt goes 3-24 and you have a chance to win, that says a lot about the rest of your guys. Jason has nights like that, but he does so many other things for our team." Scott on Dallas' 17-1 run in the 4th: "I think we got a little tentative defensively and because we were, they stayed aggressive and made their free throws. They did a good job of being much more aggressive in the 4th quarter. We were a little passive and didn't try to attack like they did at the end." Jason Kidd: "I missed a couple of shots in the beginning and I stopped having confidence for some odd reason. Even though I didn't shoot good, we had a chance to win." Kidd: "That's the game of basketball. Some nights it's not going to go in. One of the things I've been telling myself all season is to have confidence. After the first 2 shots, I stopped having confidence for some reason. And even though I didn't shoot the ball well, we had a great chance to win this game." Kidd on reaching the 5,000 assist milestone: "The milestone is great. To get over 5,000 assists and to do it where it all started, that means something. Hopefully I can find the basket in San Antonio." Kenyon Martin: "We had the lead but we let it get away. We had a couple of turnovers and missed shots. Then they came down and scored. We just let it get away." Kerry Kittles: "They made some big plays down the stretch. Dirk was the key for them. They attacked us and were able to get in the penalty early on in the 4th quarter. That allowed them to get to the free throw line early on. That was the difference." Kittles on Nowitzki: "He's a tough player. He makes tough shots. He takes big guys out and takes the little guys and shoots over them. He's a tough match up. Keith Van Horn: "On the offensive end, when it came down to it, we didn't make the shots we needed to. They got a big loose ball and a rebound for 2 extra possessions and we missed some shots." Lucious Harris: "We just couldn't make a basket and they got some easy baskets. We missed shots." Dallas Mavericks 113, New Jersey Nets 105 at Dallas (January 21) 1st 2nd 3rd 4th - Final 2FG 3FG FG% FT% Dallas 30 26 24 33 - 113 .500 .238 .434 .857 New Jersey 17 32 32 24 - 105 .493 .250 .451 .704 Halftime: Dallas 56-49 3rd Q: New Jersey 81-80 Technicals: none Flagrant fouls: Shawn Bradley 6:46 3rd Refs: Hue Hollins, Tim Donaghy, Violet Palmer Attendance: 20,039 (sellout) Dallas Mavericks REB Player MIN FGM-FGA 3PM-3PA FTM-FTA PTS O-T AST TO PF STL BLK Juwan Howard 36 9-17 0-0 4-6 22 5-12 3 0 4 0 2 Greg Buckner 6 1-1 0-0 0-0 2 0-1 0 0 0 0 0 Dirk Nowitzki 44 11-27 1-5 16-18 39 5-13 1 2 2 1 1 Adrian Griffin 28 2-2 0-0 0-1 4 0-4 2 1 5 2 1 Steve Nash 43 5-14 1-4 8-8 19 0-1 4 3 1 0 0 Johnny Newman 19 1-3 1-2 4-4 7 0-1 1 0 3 0 0 Tim Hardaway 22 3-9 2-7 0-0 8 0-3 6 0 2 1 0 Eduardo Najera 29 3-4 0-0 1-1 7 1-7 1 1 3 6 0 Wang Zhizhi 12 1-5 0-3 3-4 5 1-2 0 1 0 0 0 Shawn Bradley 1 0-1 0-0 0-0 0 0-1 0 0 1 0 0 Totals 48 36-83 5-21 36-42 113 12-45 18 10 21 10 4 New Jersey Nets REB Player MIN FGM-FGA 3PM-3PA FTM-FTA PTS O-T AST TO PF STL BLK Kenyon Martin 40 7-16 0-0 7-11 21 1-6 2 2 5 1 2 Keith Van_Horn 36 6-14 1-4 0-0 13 5-15 2 2 5 0 0 Todd MacCulloch 18 5-9 0-0 3-4 13 5-9 0 2 4 1 0 Jason Kidd 44 1-17 1-7 0-0 3 2-8 15 6 1 1 0 Kerry Kittles 28 2-7 0-1 1-2 5 2-5 2 0 1 2 0 Aaron Williams 16 5-7 0-0 3-4 13 2-3 2 0 5 0 0 Lucious Harris 26 9-13 2-4 3-4 23 2-4 3 2 4 1 0 Richard Jefferson 16 5-6 0-0 2-2 12 0-0 1 0 5 0 0 Donny Marshall 2 0-1 0-0 0-0 0 0-0 0 0 0 0 0 Jason Collins 14 1-1 0-0 0-0 2 0-1 0 0 0 0 1 Totals 48 41-91 4-16 19-27 105 19-51 27 14 30 6 3 Dallas at Houston (January 22) Houston went up 6-0 early, but that was their largest lead. Dallas scored 7 straight points to go up 17-14 with 5:44 left. The game stayed close and the teams traded leads. Johnny Newman missed a long jumper with 2.2 seconds remaining, but the rebound bounced to Steve Nash and Nash hit the short jumper at the buzzer and the game was tied 34-34. Nash had 10 points and Cuttino Mobley had 12 points. Mobley converted a 3-point play to give Houston the lead at 39-38 with 9:45 to go, but Dallas went on a 10-1 run to go up 48-40 with 7:25 left. Houston pulled within 47-51 with 5:10 remaining and Dallas went on a 13-1 run, capped by a dunk by Juwan Howard, to go up 64-50 with 1:25 left. Dallas led 66-54 at the half. Nash had 16 points, Howard had 15 points, and Mobley had 16 points in the half. Dallas led 70-58 with 10:30 left and Houston went on a 12-3 run to cut Dallas' lead down to just 73-70 with 5:50 remaining. Dallas was able to hang on to a single-digit lead and closed the quarter with a 7-2 run (including a rare basket from Shawn Bradley - his first points in January) to go up 84-77 after 3. Mobley had 10 points in the 3rd quarter. 4 points by Dirk Nowitzki gave Dallas a 94-85 lead with 7:25 left, but Houston would not let Dallas pull away as Kevin Willis converted a 3-point play and Mobley got a layup. Steve Francis got a layup, Kelvin Cato hit 1 of 2 free throws, and Mobley got a layup to make it just a 1 point game with Dallas leading 101-100 with 2:43 to go. Nash missed and Mobley turned the ball over. Tim Hardaway set from outside and drained the quick 3-pointer. Howard took the foul instead of giving Cato the easy basket, but Cato hit both free throws with 1:39 left. Nash passed an open shot and instead Howard missed a jumper, but Mobley missed an open 3-point attempt with 1:12 left. Nash redeemed himself by not passing up an open look and drained the 3-pointer to give Dallas a 107-102 lead with 50 seconds remaining. Terence Morris missed a 3-pointer and Dallas hit 6 free throws down the stretch to seal the game. Dallas won 113-107. Phew. Did Houston get really good looks at 3-pointers and they simply did not go in. I'm glad Dallas is done with games in Houston (the previous one was the 87-124 blowout in mid-November) - and hopefully the 2 future Houston games in Dallas are easier. Both teams played well, with some slumps thrown in the middle, but Dallas hit the shots they needed to down the stretch and Houston came up empty. Houston also hurt themselves by missing 9 free throws in the game. All praise Steve Nash! In back-to-back games defending Jason Kidd and Steve Francis, Nash came through big time defensively and still had energy to score in this game. Not surprisingly, Nash said he was tired after the game. Nash had a monster game with 31 points, including 10 points in the 4th quarter (and the clutch 3-pointer), and 10 assists (but did have 5 turnovers). He had to play 41 minutes as Tim Hardaway got into foul trouble in the 1st half (picked up 4). Dirk Nowitzki was his usual solid self and had 25 points including 3-4 3-pointers, 9 rebounds, and 5 blocks - including one where he flew in from no where to prevent the breakaway dunk. Juwan Howard had his 2nd nice game in a row with 19 points (15 in the 1st half) and 13 rebounds including 8 offensive. Adrian Griffin had 15 points and 7 rebounds before fouling out midway through the 4th quarter. Danny Manning started, but only played 8 minutes. Hardaway had shot just 1-8 FG before hitting the key 3-pointer late in the 4th. He had 10 points on 2-9 FG and 5-6 FT in 16 minutes. Eduardo Najera was fairly quiet with just 4 points and 3 rebounds (all offensive) in 29 minutes. Johnny Newman had 2 points in 14 minutes. And Shawn Bradley again got off the bench and had 2 points and 4 rebounds in 10 minutes as he was brought in for defensive purposes. Houston was lead by the hot shooting Cuttino Mobley with 35 points including 13-19 FG and 6 rebounds before fouling out with 6 seconds left. 19 of his points came in the 2nd half. Francis had 25 points on 9-23 FG and 7-10 FT and 5 assists. Rookie Eddie Griffin did a nice job and showed some non-rookie moves. He had 19 points and 3 blocks. Kelvin Cato had 6 points including 1-5 FG and 10 rebounds. Quotes Donn Nelson: "This is a total team effort. Everybody had a hand in this one - so many big plays. This has been one of those special rivalries over the years. This has been a really tough building for us to win in and any way we can get out of here with a win is good." Nelson: "This has been a tough building for us to win in, but we got it going early and had enough late to pull out the win." Nelson: "Steve and Dirk really took over late in the game and they continue to lead the way for us. I'm proud of everyone in our locker room." Nelson on Hardaway's 3-pointer: "That's just Tim Hardaway. That's why we went out and got him in the offseason. He has the heart of a lion." Nelson: "That's the beauty of the Dallas Mavericks - you never know who it will be stepping up." Nelson on Nash: "If Steve doesn't make the All-Star team, it'll be a sad day in the NBA. Everything the guy stands for belongs in that game. He's a leader, he has the numbers, he has a heart as big as all outdoors. It would just be a shame if he's left off the All-Star team. The thing a lot of people don't know is he is on the other team's top guard every night. Whether it's Jason Kidd or Steve Francis or whoever, he's the one who draws him. He's one of the most underrated defensive guards in the league." Nelson on Bradley: "He's working his way back into the rotation. I thought he had a huge impact. It was a layup dunk out there for a while, then he kind of changed some shots and had an impact like he usually does and how we are expecting he does in the playoffs." Dirk Nowitzki: "We made a couple of runs but Houston was always right there. Mobley and Francis are always tough to stop and even though they got their points, we got the win. Basketball is a game of runs and it is always about keeping the other team's runs short." Nowitzki on Dallas winning: "It's great! Our confidence is high and we do what we have to do to get the job done. No one is scared to take the last shot on this team." Nowitzki on Nash: "Unbelievable! He is our leader and he should definitely be an All-Star or I will be disappointed. He is our best defender and he does it all for us." Nowitzki on Nash: "It hasn't only been the last couple of nights. He plays that way every night. He's just having an unbelievable year. He showed how good he was last year. But this year, he's definitely got to be on the All-Star team." Steve Nash: "Tonight we just used a balanced offense to get it done. Everyone was giving us something and that is important with the kind of team we are. Even with Finley sitting, we feel like we can go out there and beat anyone." Nash: "The Rockets got some confidence early and they were matching us with the big shots, but we hit the shots down the stretch and that really made a difference in this game." Nash: "It has been 2 terrific guards to play against the last 2 nights. I think that's a big challenge. I just try to compete and keep up with them. I don't know how I stack up against the best guards. I believe in myself. I guess games like these aren't going to hurt my chances. And I'd be lying if I said it wouldn't be a big thrill to make the All-Star team. But I'm just playing and not thinking about those things." Nash: "I don't have to shoot but I am one of the guys that needs to shoot the ball when I am open." Nash on Hardaway's 3-pointer: "I felt good when I saw him get the ball. We know he makes huge shots so it was good to have him hit that one. It really gave us some space." Nash on Hardaway's influence on Nash shooting 3s late in the game: "I think I've become a lot more confidant in those situations because of him. That's the kind of shot leaders should make." Nash on Hardaway: "There has been 3 or 4 games where Timmy has made those unbelievable shots. His job is to make big plays and his tonight made the difference." Nash on missing Finley: "We're continuing to develop as a team without Michael in the lineup. It's not hurting us because we are winning. In some ways, it has been a positive, but I would still rather have Michael in the lineup." Tim Hardaway on his 3-pointer: "I just came in the game looking to get open and when I did. They found me and I hit the 3. Everyone in this league knows that when I'm open like that I'm going to take the shot." Hardaway on his 3-pointer: "They just found me wide open. That's what I do. I take big shots. It's what makes the game fun. Everybody in the league knows that when you leave me open, I'm going to make shots like that. It's no big thing." Hardaway on his 3-pointer: "I just like to shoot shots like that. I feel like it's going to go in every time." Hardaway on his 3-pointer: "Nothing is different. I came in and my teammates found me and I made a 3-pointer and that was it. That is what I am supposed to do. Everyone in the NBA knows I am going to make those shots. I like taking big shots, that is what makes the game fun." Hardaway on missing Finley: "We can't just lay down and die. We have to come out and play as hard as we can as a team. We have a lot more to lose than Houston does and one win at the end of the season could make a big difference in the playoffs." Rudy Tomjanovich: "For the 6th game in 8 days, and 3 back-to-backs in a row, the down of hearing Kenny Thomas isn't going to be with us for 2 more games after tonight, and a team that is playing great, I just can't tell you how proud I am of how my guys played tonight." Tomjanovich: "We were close. It's tough because we've had so many different lineups. Seems like whoever we throw out there, we're going to be competitive. We hate losing, but it's been close. So many games have been 1 and 2 possessions with 1 or 2 minutes to go. We haven't had a chance to work on a lot of stuff. We haven't had a live practice in close to 2 weeks." Tomjanovich on Cato and Willis: "I thought they were both great. They laid it all out there. I'm extremely pleased with both guys' performances. They gave us a lot of energy and almost helped us win the game." Tomjanovich on Nash: "A couple of years ago, we played up there and he was a negative. He was on the outs. But look how he's turned it around. He's crafty. He's not a one-thrust-at-the-basket guy, the way most guards are. He'll get in there and look for the 3-point guys." Steve Francis: "I think it was one of our hardest games effort-wise. I thought that we had a great shot but they came up big. Adrian Griffin went 3 for 5 from behind the 3-point line. He knocked them down and that really hurt us. We couldn't throw the ball in the bucket. We had a lot of open looks and we'll take those looks anytime. We've always fought hard to the end. I thought that we had an advantage today but we couldn't make our shots." Francis: "We had some slow guys on Nash. He knocks down 2 crucial 3-pointers with hands in his face." Cuttino Mobley: "We missed a couple of easy shots. There were a couple of missed assignments and they capitalized on them. I saw that we were out-scored by 12 in the 2nd quarter. They are a good team and I think that we need to learn from that because we have some similarities. We have to come up with those big shots at the end." Mobley: "Steve Nash does so much and they have so many good shooters that it is hard to match up with them." Mobley: "Steve Nash really stood tall for them tonight. Howard was steady and Hardaway hit that big shot at the end. That's how they are. They come at you from everywhere." Mobley: "Nash has got so much. Nasty Nash. The kid's good. He does a lot of amazing things to be so small. They have so many shooters on their team, they're tough to match up with." Mobley: "Tim Hardaway was missing the whole game and he had a big 3 at the end. Our luck isn't very good right now." Eddie Griffin: "We had a lot of good looks but we couldn't knock down the shots. I think that was the difference in the game. They are tough because you can't leave anybody. If you help, they will have a shooter open. They are real good at swinging the ball and finding the open man. I think that is why they are such a good team." Griffin: "We had a lot of good looks and for most of the night, we were on. In the end, theirs fell and ours didn't. That was the difference." Kelvin Cato: "It's a real quick tempo when you play Dallas. Steve Nash really pushes the ball. We've been in every game that we lost in the last 11 losses. In the games that we have won, we have been in those too and eeked those out in the end. We need to try to do what it takes to get some good wins and to beat some quality teams." Dallas Mavericks 113, Houston Rockets 107 at Houston (January 22) 1st 2nd 3rd 4th - Final 2FG 3FG FG% FT% Dallas 34 32 18 29 - 113 .426 .476 .438 .926 Houston 34 20 23 30 - 107 .484 .308 .432 .719 Halftime: Dallas 66-54 3rd Q: Dallas 84-77 Technicals: Dallas defensive 3 seconds 1:10 2nd, Dirk Nowitzki 1:30 3rd Refs: Danny Crawford, Derek Collins, Mark Wunderlich Attendance: 11,030 (cap 16,285 Did not play due to injury: Greg Buckner (strained left calf), Kenny Thomas (suspended) Dallas Mavericks REB Player MIN FGM-FGA 3PM-3PA FTM-FTA PTS O-T AST TO PF STL BLK Juwan Howard 37 6-16 0-0 7-7 19 8-13 2 2 3 0 1 Danny Manning 8 1-4 0-0 0-0 2 0-3 0 0 1 0 1 Dirk Nowitzki 39 9-18 3-4 4-4 25 0-9 4 2 1 0 5 Adrian Griffin 32 5-8 3-5 2-2 15 1-7 1 2 6 1 0 Steve Nash 41 12-22 2-6 5-6 31 1-4 10 5 1 1 0 Wang Zhizhi 14 1-2 1-1 0-0 3 0-3 0 1 1 0 0 Tim Hardaway 16 2-9 1-4 5-6 10 1-1 3 0 4 0 0 Johnny Newman 14 0-1 0-1 2-2 2 0-0 0 1 1 0 0 Eduardo Najera 29 2-7 0-0 0-0 4 3-3 0 0 4 0 0 Shawn Bradley 10 1-2 0-0 0-0 2 1-4 0 0 2 0 0 Totals 48 39-89 10-21 25-27 113 15-47 20 13 24 2 7 Houston Rockets REB Player MIN FGM-FGA 3PM-3PA FTM-FTA PTS O-T AST TO PF STL BLK Eddie Griffin 40 8-16 3-8 0-0 19 2-3 1 2 1 1 3 Terence Morris 40 3-11 2-7 0-0 8 2-8 3 1 1 2 1 Kelvin Cato 26 1-5 0-0 4-6 6 5-10 1 0 3 2 2 Steve Francis 43 9-23 0-4 7-10 25 1-3 5 4 4 1 0 Cuttino Mobley 42 13-19 3-5 6-7 35 0-6 2 3 6 0 0 Kevin Willis 18 1-3 0-0 4-5 6 4-8 1 0 3 0 0 Moochie Norris 18 2-6 0-0 2-4 6 0-0 6 1 2 3 1 Oscar Torres 12 1-5 0-2 0-0 2 1-4 0 3 0 0 1 Teirre Brown 1 0-0 0-0 0-0 0 0-0 0 0 0 0 0 Totals 48 38-88 8-26 23-32 107 15-42 19 14 20 9 8 patricia