Michael Finley returned to action after missing 5 games with a sprained right big toe. Shawn Bradley is still out with back spasms. He may return to action for Tuesday's game, but is listed as doubtful. Eduardo Najera sat out the Memphis game with a sore left knee and is expected to sit a while (up to 2 weeks) resting the knee. Najera has not looked like the Eddie Energy we are used to seeing at all this season. Steve Nash underwent a root canal on Monday, December 22 to try to save the tooth that Karl Malone knocked loose. Dallas at Portland (December 23) Dallas had Michael Finley back for the first time in 5 games, but the rest of the big 3 were MIA for this game and the Mavs were lucky it was not a blowout with such poor outings by both Dirk Nowitzki and Steve Nash. Dallas did jump out to an early 8-1 lead 2 minutes in, but Portland went on an 11-4 run to tie the game at 12-12 with 4:50 left. Portland scored 5 straight points to take their largest lead of the quarter at 25-20 with 1:30 remaining. Portland led 26-24 after 1. Portland shot 7-10 FT while Dallas did not have a single attempt. Antawn Jamison collected 3 fouls in 3 minutes and did not play in the 2nd quarter. The game stayed close for most of the 2nd quarter with Portland holding no more than a 6 point lead for the first 9 minutes of the quarter. 6 consecutive points by Zach Randolph gave Portland a 48-38 lead with 2:30 remaining. Danny Fortson hit an 18-foot baseliner as the quarter ended. Portland led 54-47 at the half. Dallas had the free throw advantage in the 2nd quarter as the Mavs shot 9-11 FT and Portland shot 3-4 FT. For the half, Portland shot 57% FG and Dallas shot 43% FG. Portland opened the 3rd quarter with a 10-3 run to go up 64-50 with 9:40 remaining. The Mavs scored the next 6 points, but Portland answered with an 8-2 run to take their largest lead at 74-58 with 3:25 remaining. Dallas again rallied by scoring the next 9 points to pull within 67-74 with 45 seconds left. Ruben Patterson got a layup as the quarter ended and Portland led 76-67 after 3. McInnis had 10 points in the quarter. Portland led 83-71 with 9:20 left and Dallas scored the next 9 points, capped by a 3-pointer by Antoine Walker, to pull within 83-80 with 6:30 remaining. 2 free throws by Antawn Jamison pulled Dallas within 2 points, but a layup by Randolph and putback by Damon Stoudamire gave Portland a 90-84 lead with 3:45 left. Jamison got a layup, but Stoudamire drained a 3-pointer as the shot clock expired. After a Dallas missed 3-point attempt, Randolph got a layup to give Portland a 95-86 lead with 2:30 to go. Dallas missed their next 6 shots (with their only points coming from 2 free throws) and didn't have another rally in them. Portland won 97-88. It's hard to win when you are down 9 points going into the 4th quarter and only shoot 6-20 FG in the 4th. This game came down to shooting. Both teams made 4 3-pointers, Dallas made 5 more free throws than Portland, both teams had 38 rebounds, but Portland shot 52.6% (40-76) FG and Dallas shot 42.9% (33-77) FG. Portland did better with the ball with 29 assists and 12 turnovers while Dallas had 20 assists and 16 turnovers. It was the 4th straight loss for Dallas. Dallas last lost 4 in a row in March 2000. Zach Randolph had an excellent game with 27 points including 12-17 FG, 9 rebounds, and 5 assists. Jeff McInnis had a double-double with 14 points and 10 assists. Damon Stoudamire had 16 points including 6-17 FG and 7 assists. Rasheed Wallace had a poor outing with just 7 points including 3-9 FG and 5 rebounds in 21 minutes. Ruben Patterson had 12 points and 6 rebounds and Wesley Person had 10 points. Dirk Nowitzki and Steve Nash had miserable outings. Nowitzki had 6 points on 3-12 FG and 5 turnovers. He did have 9 rebounds. Nash (and I had to wonder if his tooth was bothering him) had 4 points on 0-5 FG, 0-4 3-pointers, and 4-4 FT and 6 assists in 37 minutes. The 2 Ants tried to pick up the slack, but it wasn't enough. Antoine Walker had 19 points, 8 rebounds, and 6 assists. Antawn Jamison had 20 points - 12 of which came in the 4th quarter - including 7-11 FG and 4 rebounds in 24 minutes. Michael Finley had 12 points (5-12 FG) and 5 assists in his return to action. Josh Howard had a nice outing with 14 points and 8 rebounds including 4 offensive in 30 minutes. Danny Fortson had 9 points including 4-5 FG and 3 rebounds in 10 minutes. Quotes Maurice Cheeks: "I think it was important that right before Christmas we got a win. I think it will allow us to enjoy Christmas a little better." Cheeks: "We had some crazy lineups in there in the 1st half. But they kept us in the game." Cheeks on McInnis in the 3rd quarter: "I'd like to say that was by design, but no it wasn't by design. Jeff made some offensive plays happen. He was able to make some shots, but more importantly he was getting to the basket. That 3rd quarter is where we normally have a little trouble, and he came out and scored 4 quick buckets." Damon Stoudamire: "This was an important win because the aura around here seems to always be bad. But lately it has been real bad. It's like you never know what is going to happen next. But when we play like this, it lets us know we can do it right." Jeff McInnis: "Nobody wanted to be sitting around at Christmas thinking about how bad things are. We needed to play well for that simple fact, so we could enjoy the holiday." McInnis: "I took it upon myself to be more aggressive. I just started cutting all over the court and making them defend me. I knew Finley's toe was hurt, so I just tried to attack him any time I could and make him move, move, move. His lateral movement wasn't as good as it normally is." Don Nelson: "It's like the Keystone Cops out there. We're turning it over at the oddest times and that's something I never anticipate happening." Nelson: "I thought we had a shot to win this one, but Stoudamire hit a big 3. When things are going poorly for you, it bites you in the behind." Nelson: "We've been spoiled the last few years. We know where rock bottom is because we've been there, and we aren't close to that. Anybody's dangerous for us right now. We're just not playing all that well." Nelson on Nowitzki: "It's hard for me to watch him play. It's like he's walking on egg shells. He doesn't have any lift, he's tentative, and he's scared he's going to come down on somebody's ankle again." Dirk Nowitzki: "Last year, we did a great job of stopping losing streaks at 3. Even though we weren't playing well, we'd find a way. These are tough times for us now." Nowitzki: "Every team is making shots on us. There are stretches where we get a couple of stops, but we fall back into the same old thing." Michael Finley: "Winning heals all ills. We just have to find ways to win. We're okay. Every team, since I've been in the league, has struggled at one point of the season. Except for when the Bulls went 72-10, every team has its struggles. This is ours and hopefully it'll make us stronger down the stretch." Steve Nash: "Teams take advantage of us being so small right now. They're getting too many putbacks and penetrations. We know they're going to try to bang us on the glass. ... We're so small without Shawn. We really need him for 10-15 minutes a game." Nash: "We really haven't gone through this the last 4 years. It's discouraging, but at the same time there is a lot of time left." Portland Trailblazers 97, Dallas Mavericks 88 at Portland (December 23) 1st 2nd 3rd 4th - Final 2FG 3FG FG% FT% Portland 26 28 22 21 - 97 .581 .286 .526 .619 Dallas 24 23 20 21 - 88 .475 .250 .429 .900 Halftime: Portland 54-47 3rd Q: Portland 76-67 Technicals: Dallas defensive 3 seconds 11:03 1st Refs: Bennie Adams, Greg Willard, Luis Grillo Attendance: 14,556 (cap 19,980) Did not play due to injury: Shawn Bradley (back spasms) Portland Trailblazers REB Player MIN FGM-FGA 3PM-3PA FTM-FTA PTS O-T AST TO PF STL BLK Rasheed Wallace 22 3-9 0-3 1-2 7 1-5 3 1 5 0 0 Zach Randolph 37 12-17 0-0 3-6 27 3-9 5 2 3 2 1 Dale Davis 21 0-1 0-0 1-2 1 1-6 0 1 2 1 1 Jeff McInnis 41 7-12 0-1 0-0 14 0-3 10 1 4 3 1 Damon Stoudamire 40 6-17 2-5 2-2 16 1-3 7 0 3 1 0 Ruben Patterson 39 4-7 0-0 4-7 12 3-6 2 2 2 3 0 Qyntel Woods 19 3-4 0-0 2-2 8 1-5 2 4 2 0 0 Kaniel Dickens 6 1-1 0-0 0-0 2 0-0 0 0 1 0 0 Wesley Person 15 4-8 2-5 0-0 10 0-1 0 0 0 0 0 Totals 48 40-76 4-14 13-21 97 10-38 29 12 22 10 3 Dallas Mavericks REB Player MIN FGM-FGA 3PM-3PA FTM-FTA PTS O-T AST TO PF STL BLK Antoine Walker 44 7-19 2-5 3-3 19 3-8 6 2 4 0 0 Dirk Nowitzki 42 3-12 0-3 0-0 6 1-9 2 5 3 0 1 Eduardo Najera 10 0-1 0-0 2-2 2 1-2 0 1 2 0 0 Michael Finley 37 5-12 2-4 0-0 12 0-1 5 0 3 0 0 Steve Nash 37 0-5 0-4 4-4 4 1-2 6 2 0 1 0 Antawn Jamison 24 7-11 0-0 6-6 20 3-4 0 0 4 0 0 Josh Howard 30 6-10 0-0 2-3 14 4-8 1 3 4 2 1 Tony Delk 6 1-2 0-0 0-0 2 0-1 0 0 0 0 0 Danny Fortson 10 4-5 0-0 1-2 9 2-3 0 2 1 0 0 Totals 48 33-77 4-16 18-20 88 15-38 20 16 21 3 2 Dallas at Sacramento (December 25) It was the first Christmas day game for Dallas ever and the league decided to give the Mavs a nice Christmas gift of having Sacramento's best player sit out as Peja Stojakovic received a 1 game suspension for bumping a ref during a previous game. The Mavs thumbed their nose at that gift by coming out and playing like crap during the 1st half. The game did stay close in the 1st quarter as neither team held more than a 4 point lead over the first 9 minutes of the game. Sacramento led 36-30 after 1. Mike Bibby had 10 points and Antawn Jamison had 11 points and 6 rebounds. Sacramento shot 61% FG and Dallas shot 46% FG. Sacramento led 38-33 with 10:25 remaining and scored the next 11 points to go up 49-33 with 7:50 left as Dallas missed 4 shots and turned the ball over twice. Dallas did score 5 consecutive points to pull within 51-41 with 4:15 to go, but Sacramento scored the next 8 points to go up 59-41 with 2:15 left. Sacramento led 60-44 at the half. Dallas only shot 5-17 FG in the 2nd quarter. Gerald Wallace had 13 points and 10 rebounds in the half. Fortunately, a different Mavs team came out in the 3rd quarter and was able to cut into Sacramento's lead. Sacramento led 62-48 with 9:40 left and Dallas went on a 15-2 run, that included 4 3-pointers, to pull within 63-64 with 7:20 remaining. Sacramento responded with a 13-2 run to push their lead back to double-digits at 77-65 with 3:54 left. Dallas closed the quarter with a 9-2 run, capped by Michael Finley's _first_ bucket of the game (started 0-9 FG). Sacramento led 84-78 after 3. Dirk Nowitzki and Antoine Walker each had 10 points in the quarter. And Finley opened the 4th quarter with a 3-pointer and 2 free throws by Nowitzki made it a 1 point game at 83-84 with 10:15 left. Vlade Divac got a layup, the teams traded misses, and Walker nailed a 3-pointer to put Dallas up 86-88 with 7:30 remaining - Dallas' first lead since midway through the 1st quarter. Sacramento scored the next 4 points, Dallas scored the next 4 points, Sacramento got a 3, and Dallas got a putback as the game went back and forth and back and forth and it was going to be a game of who blinks first as there were 6 ties and 5 lead changes in the 4th quarter. The game was tied at 98-98 with 2:50 left on 2 free throws by Bibby. With the shot clock running down, Steve Nash nailed a 3-pointer. Bibby hit a jumper with 2:10 remaining. Finley missed a 3-point attempt, but he blocked Brad Miller's attempt at the other end and was fouled (putting Sacramento in the penalty). Finley hit both free throws to give Dallas a 103-100 lead with 1:30 left. But Bibby swished a 3-pointer to tie the game 12 seconds later. But Walker answered with a 3-pointer 15 seconds later. Bibby missed a 3-point attempt with a minute left. Nowitzki found Finley in the corner and he nailed a 3-pointer to give Dallas a 109-103 lead with 37.5 seconds remaining. Anthony Peeler missed the quick layup attempt and Nowitzki was intentionally fouled. He hit both free throws. Bobby Jackson missed a 3-point attempt and Dallas ran the clock out. Dallas won 111-103. Merry Christmas! And thank you, Mavs, for giving me what I really wanted for Christmas - a Mavs win. It was a tale of 2 halves. Dallas shot 40% including 3-11 3-pointers and Sacramento shot 50% including 5-8 3-pointers in the 1st half and Dallas shot 46.8% including 10-18 3-pointers and Sacramento shot 37% including 3-10 3-pointers in the 2nd half. Sacramento out-rebounded Dallas 25-19 in the 1st half and Dallas out-rebounded Sacramento 28-21 in the 2nd half. Dallas had 10 turnovers in the 1st half and just 3 in the 2nd half. Sacramento had the better energy and effort in the 1st half and Dallas had the better energy and effort in the 2nd half. Of course, Sacramento was playing short handed, but Dallas went basically with a 6-man rotation. Dirk Nowitzki and Antoine Walker picked up their game in the 2nd half and Antawn Jamison kept the game from getting too far out of hand in the 1st half. Nowitzki had 22 points and 9 rebounds in the 2nd half and finished with 31 points including 10-10 FT (all came in the 2nd half), 14 rebounds, 5 assists, and 3 blocks. Walker had 20 points and 10 rebounds in the 2nd half and finished with 23 points including 5-11 3-pointers, 12 rebounds, and 8 assists. Jamison had 16 points including 7-10 FG and 7 rebounds including 5 offensive in the 1st half and finished with 22 points including 10-14 FG and 9 rebounds - he didn't play in the 4th quarter as Don Nelson opted to stick with what was flowing well for the Mavs and left Josh Howard on the court for the entire 4th (the only sub for Dallas during the 4th was when Steve Nash came back in after a 3 3/4 minute rest, replacing Tony Delk). Nash had 14 points including 3-4 3-pointers and 11 assists. Howard had 9 points including 4-11 FG, 4 rebounds, and 2 blocks in 34 minutes. Michael Finley struggled mightly most of the game, but did hit key buckets to end the 3rd quarter, start the 4th quarter, and with 38 seconds left. Of course, those were the only buckets he hit. He had 12 points including 3-15 FG, but did have 3 blocks. Delk played 9 minutes, Danny Fortson played 3 minutes, Travis Best played 1 minute, and Eduardo Najera played 1 minute. Mike Bibby was the high man for Sacramento with 23 points, but only had 4 assists and had 5 turnovers. Vlade Divac had 21 points including 9-15 FG, 8 rebounds, and 5 assists. Brad Miller had a near triple-double before fouling with 30 seconds left. He had 13 points, 12 rebounds, and 9 assists. Gerald Wallace had 16 points including 7-11 FG and 11 rebounds, but only had 3 points and 1 rebound in the 2nd half. Bobby Jackson struggled shooting with 13 points including 4-18 FG. Quotes Don Nelson: "It was like 2 different games. The 1st half and there was the 2nd half. In the 2nd half, our offense just wasn't working so we junked the whole thing and went to passing." Nelson: "It's not a statement at all. We just feel fortunate to get a win." Nelson on the 6-man rotation: "I'm not comfortable with it. But to get out of this slump, this was the way to do it. I had to tighten up the rotation." Nelson on the 3-point shooting: "That's something we haven't done. I assumed that we were going to be good in that area. And we're one of the worst 3-point shooting teams in the league at this point. But tonight we were very good." Nelson: "Nowitzki is alive and well. We hadn't seen him in a while." Dirk Nowitzki: "The whole organization needed the win. We lost 4 in a row. We didn't look good on the road at all. We talked about defense a lot lately, and still they light us up for 60 in the 1st half. We just had to be more solid defensively." Nowitzki: "It was fun to watch. Finally, we come through. We've been struggling a lot offensively. We got the stops we needed down the stretch. We got some big buckets. Antoine hit a big 3, Steve hit a big 3, and Mike hit the biggest 3 at the end." Nowitzki: "I tried to be aggressive early on and try to get in the game and build my confidence. I've been playing without confidence the last couple of weeks, and I just said to myself be aggressive and if your shot goes, it goes; if it doesn't, just keep staying aggressive, get some boards, and try to find another way to get in the game." Michael Finley: "I don't care if they only had 3 guys. This was a big win because it was a road win. Even without Peja, they're still a pretty good team, especially at home. For us to come here and overcome the deficit like we did and still keep our composure and get a win, hopefully we can use this and build upon it for the remainder of the year." Finley: "I won't let the guys relax. I won't let them think this was a championship game. This was just one bump in the road that we got over and now it's time for our team to go up." Finley on his shooting struggles: "I wasn't going to stop shooting. I guess I was fortunate to hit the one that counted." Steve Nash: "It's not a bad Christmas after all." Nash on Nowitzki not having a turnover in 47 minutes: "That's an amazing statistic for a guy his size, handling the ball, driving to the basket. To not turn it over for 47 minutes was incredible." Nash on Nowitzki: "Not only did he score, rebound, and pass the ball, he didn't have a single turnover in 47 minutes. That's incredible." Nash: "Gerald Wallace was just brilliant. He made some jump shots, got a couple blocks, some follow dunks. He really hurt us. We were glad he wasn't in there at the end." Antoine Walker: "Hopefully, this can jump-start our season to the right direction before the New Year starts." Walker: "It was a huge win. We needed to stop the losing streak." Walker: "I'm not worried about my percentage. You just keep shooting. I love it in this system. It's perfect for me. Nellie's been great for me. He likes a point-forward. It's a blessing for me to be able to catch a coach like this at this point of my career. Maybe this win will help us get started again. We know we don't want to spoil an opportunity like this, with all the talent we have." Rick Adelman on missing Stojakovic: "He's the one who knows Dirk well and can play him out on the floor." Adelman on sitting Wallace most of the 4th: "He was cramping up. We made the decision to go with someone else." Vlade Divac: "They really started making their shots during the 2nd half and got back in the game. In the 2nd half we really needed to get more points, so obviously we missed Peja." Divac on defending Walker: "It's unusual because when he starts to make moves - and I have played my whole career at center - it's natural to go to the paint." Gerald Wallace on asking out midway through the 3rd quarter: "I came down and I thought I felt like my leg was starting to cramp. So I wanted to come out before it did." Dallas Mavericks 111, Sacramento 103 at Sacramento (December 25) 1st 2nd 3rd 4th - Final 2FG 3FG FG% FT% Dallas 30 14 34 33 - 111 .429 .448 .435 .783 Sacramento 36 24 24 19 - 103 .432 .444 .435 .750 Halftime: Sacramento 60-44 3rd Q: Sacramento 64-78 Technicals: Brad Miller 7:31 3rd, Antoine Walker 4:47 3rd Refs: David Jones, Ed F. Rush, Nolan Fine Attendance: 17,317 (sellout) Did not play due to injury: Shawn Bradley (back spasms), Predrag Stojakovic (suspended) Dallas Mavericks REB Player MIN FGM-FGA 3PM-3PA FTM-FTA PTS O-T AST TO PF STL BLK Antoine Walker 37 9-21 5-11 0-0 23 2-12 8 4 5 0 2 Antawn Jamison 35 10-14 0-1 2-4 22 7-9 1 2 3 1 1 Dirk Nowitzki 47 9-22 3-6 10-10 31 1-14 5 0 4 3 3 Michael Finley 38 3-15 2-6 4-6 12 2-4 1 2 1 1 3 Steve Nash 35 5-9 3-4 1-1 14 0-2 11 3 3 0 0 Josh Howard 34 4-11 0-1 1-2 9 2-4 2 2 2 1 2 Danny Fortson 3 0-0 0-0 0-0 0 1-2 0 0 1 0 0 Tony Delk 9 0-0 0-0 0-0 0 0-0 1 0 1 0 0 Travis Best 1 0-0 0-0 0-0 0 0-0 0 0 0 0 0 Eduardo Najera 1 0-0 0-0 0-0 0 0-0 0 0 0 0 0 Totals 48 40-92 13-29 18-23 111 15-47 29 13 20 6 11 Sacramento Kings REB Player MIN FGM-FGA 3PM-3PA FTM-FTA PTS O-T AST TO PF STL BLK Gerald Wallace 34 7-11 0-0 2-3 16 5-11 1 0 2 0 3 Brad Miller 39 4-10 0-0 5-6 13 1-12 9 3 6 0 0 Vlade Divac 34 9-15 0-0 3-4 21 2-8 5 3 3 0 0 Doug Christie 24 2-6 1-3 0-0 5 1-4 3 1 2 2 0 Mike Bibby 38 9-20 2-4 3-4 23 0-3 4 5 3 1 1 Bobby Jackson 31 4-18 3-7 2-2 13 2-4 1 2 2 0 0 Anthony Peeler 24 3-6 2-4 0-0 8 0-3 3 1 1 2 0 Darius Songaila 16 2-6 0-0 0-1 4 1-1 0 2 5 1 0 Totals 48 40-92 8-18 15-20 103 12-46 26 19 24 6 4 Memphis at Dallas (December 27) Dallas came out white hot and jumped out to a 20-8 lead with 7:50 remaining as Dallas hit their first 8 shots (and they would hit 1 more before finally missing). Dallas took their largest lead at 31-15 with 3:45 left, but Memphis closed the quarter with a 10-3 run. Dallas led 34-25 after 1. Dallas shot 64% FG including 5-7 3-pointers and Memphis shot 50% FG. The problem with building such a large lead early is that it tends to be fools gold and is hard to maintain. And Dallas was unable to maintain it as Memphis' 2nd unit kept chipping way. Dallas led 40-33 with 9:25 to go and Memphis went on a 12-2 run to go up 45-42 with 7:10 left. Memphis took their largest lead at 48-44 with 5:50 remaining and Dallas went on a 14-3 run to go up 58-51 with 20 seconds left. Pau Gasol hit a hook shot as the quarter ended. Dallas led 58-53 at the half. Memphis had 9 offensive rebounds in the 2nd quarter. Dallas scored the first 10 points of the 3rd quarter to go up 68-53 with 9 minutes remaining. A 3-pointer by Michael Finley gave Dallas their largest lead at 77-59 with 5:45 to go. Memphis' 2nd unit came in and continued chipping away at Dallas' lead, but the Mavs were able to maintain a double-digit lead the rest of the quarter. Dallas led 88-75 after 3. Dallas shot 4-5 3-pointers during the 3rd quarter. Memphis opened the 4th quarter with a 10-2 run to pull within 85-90 with 9 minutes left. Neither team did anything but miss shots and turn the ball over over the next 1:45. Antawn Jamison hit a jumper and then Bonzi Wells got consecutive buckets to pull Memphis within 89-92 with 6 minutes to go. Finley answered with a 3-pointer and, after another drought by both teams, Jamison got one of his up close funky shots to give Dallas a 97-89 lead with 4:10 remaining. James Posey nailed a 3-pointer, but Steve Nash answered with a 3 and there was 3:15 remaining. Memphis missed and Nash found Jamison for the layup to give Dallas a 102-92 lead with 2:45 to go. After another minute of uglyness, Wells putback his own miss and Posey hit 2 free throws to pull Memphis within 96-102 with 1:20 left. Finley missed, but Memphis missed on 2 attempts and elected not to stop the clock as the Mavs had the ball up 6 with 35 seconds remaining. The Mavs ran the clock down and Finley nailed a fade away as the shot clock ran out. Wells got a meaningless buck in the closing seconds. Dallas won 104-98. It was the case where Memphis' 2nd unit gave Dallas much more problems than their 1st unit - and Hubie Brown recognized that and 3 of their starters played less than 20 minutes each. Dallas took the starting unit out of their game by taking Pau Gasol out of the game. Whenever Gasol was in the post and the ball was on the same side of the court, Dallas put 2 men on Gasol - even if he didn't have the ball. As a result, he was not a factor in this game. Dallas won this game behind the arc - everything else was fairly even. Dallas shot 46.5% (40-86) FG and Memphis shot 45.1% (41-91) FG. Dallas shot 13-14 FT and Memphis shot 13-18 FT. Both teams had 18 fouls. Dallas out-rebounded 48-45 and Memphis had an 18-16 offensive rebound edge. Dallas was very sloppy in turning the ball over 18 times while Memphis turned the ball over just 11 times. But the key was Dallas shot 11-20 3-pointers and Memphis shot 3-19 3-pointers. Dallas got 8 more points from 3-pointers than Memphis in a 6 point game. It was again a 6-man rotation for Dallas as Tony Delk played 7 minutes and Danny Fortson played 2 minutes and the rest of the minutes went to the big 5 and the rook - and all 6 were in double-digits. Michael Finley was the high man with 24 points including 9-15 FG and 5-7 3-pointers. Steve Nash, Antoine Walker, and Dirk Nowitzki each had a double-double. Nash had 16 points and 10 assists. Walker had 13 points on 6-17 FG, 10 rebounds, and 8 assists. Nowitzki had 18 points and 17 rebounds (he actually had a double-double in the 1st half). Josh Howard had 15 points and 6 rebounds in a career high 43 minutes. He did commit 5 turnovers, though. Antawn Jamison had 14 points including 5-14 FG and 8 rebounds including 7 offensive in 26 minutes (limited some by fouls). Bonzi Wells enjoyed his fairly usual strong outing against Dallas with 30 points off the bench. He also had 7 rebounds, and 5 assists. Lorenzen Wright had 14 points including 6-9 FG and 12 rebounds. James Posey had 14 points. Mister Hustle Bo Outlaw had his arms every where and had 10 points on 5-7 FG and 7 rebounds including 4 offensive. Pau Gasol had just 10 points in 19 minutes, Jason Williams had just 4 points in 19 minutes, and Mike Miller had just 3 points on 1-5 FG in 17 minutes. Memphis did have a scary moment during the 4th quarter when Hubie Brown nearly fainted and gathered much more attention than he wanted - he refused medical attention and said he was fine. Quotes Don Nelson: "We had to sweat this one out, no question about that. They had a deeper bench then we did and played it. We had a hard time against their 2nd unit. They were very athletic. They gave us more problems than their starters and when Hubie stayed with them, I was very worried about the game." Nelson: "We couldn't generate any offense when I was trying to rest Nash and I didn't have any choice but to play everybody 40 minutes. Jamison struggled in the 1st half but came on and got his own rebounds. Nash is the guy that took over and made shots when we needed them. He was a very aggressive player. Everybody chipped in and did their thing." Nelson: "Bonzi Wells was a thorn in our side all night. I think his arm got tired from shooting so many times. He played a great game." Dirk Nowitzki: "We really looked confident out there. The Sacramento win was big for us confidence wise and we came out strong and made some shots, moved the ball, looked for the open guy, and it was fun early on. Then all of the sudden their energy guys came in and pounded us on the glass. We just have to be prepared for that. We've got to be more ready for the 2nd unit and we did a better job in the 2nd half and found a way to win the game, but it should have been a lot easier night. I think we made it hard on ourselves." Nowitzki on his 1st back-to-back double-double since 2 games into the season: "It's been that long? It's been awhile, but I think we're a better rebounding team. Collectively as a team, we have better rebounders than we did last year. Tonight I just tried to get every one, tried to be aggressive and it worked out pretty well." Antoine Walker: "It was a good game for us, a big win for us getting back home. We knew they were going to come in and play hard. They lost a game at home to New York last night, but we came out with a lot of energy offensively scoring the basketball well. We had a couple of break downs in the 2nd quarter where we didn't take care of the basketball, gave up some 2nd chance opportunities, but for the most part we're playing pretty good basketball and that's all you can ask for at this point. We're trying to build a winning streak here. In the last 2 games, we're starting to get it together a little bit offensively and defensively we came up with some big defensive plays tonight as well." Antawn Jamison on Howard: "He's already contributing big time to a very talented team. There aren't many rookies doing what he's doing." Josh Howard: "It's coming for me. Once I feel totally comfortable, I'll reach my maximum level. But I'm getting used to the minutes." Hubie Brown: "If you look at the 1st half, we had it somewhat under control, but they hurt us down the stretch. Bonzi played great tonight. He was carrying them. But the rest of them were working. They were working defensively and getting all their points in the paint. Where our 1st unit settled for jump shots and no 2nd shots, our 2nd group was all over the offensive board and keeping things alive and giving us a 2nd chance." Brown: "It's another hard road loss for us. We have been playing them tough, but we can't seem to get the right 10 guys to give us production." Brown on nearly fainting during the 4th quarter: "I'm fine. I tripped when I got up and everybody got all excited. When you're old, everybody gets excited." Bonzi Wells: "My shot wasn't falling the way I wanted it to fall tonight. But I'm going to keep plugging at it. The team and the coaches have a lot of confidence in me to do my thing so I just have to go out there and deliver. Tonight I played okay, but it doesn't really count if you don't get the victory." Wells on Brown nearly fainting: "We're still concerned. I saw him about to pass out. But he's a fighter and I guess he got a little too excited." Shane Battier on Brown nearly fainting: "I just think he got up too fast. The blood rushed to his head. There's no question that Hubie's one of the more animated coaches in the league. But once he sat down and started yelling, we knew he was fine." Earl Watson: "It's a tough loss. We had a chance to win, and on the road against a tough Western Conference team. But the deficit was so much. If we just could have stayed close." Dallas Mavericks 104, Memphis Grizzlies 98 at Dallas (December 27) 1st 2nd 3rd 4th - Final 2FG 3FG FG% FT% Dallas 34 24 30 16 - 104 .439 .550 .465 .929 Memphis 25 28 22 23 - 98 .528 .158 .451 .722 Halftime: Dallas 58-53 3rd Q: Dallas 88-75 Technicals: Hubie Brown 9:59 3rd Refs: Danny Crawford, James Capers, Michael Henderson Attendance: 20,059 (sellout) Did not play due to injury: Shawn Bradley (back spasms), Edaurdo Najera (sore left knee) Dallas Mavericks REB Player MIN FGM-FGA 3PM-3PA FTM-FTA PTS O-T AST TO PF STL BLK Josh Howard 43 6-12 0-0 3-3 15 2-6 0 5 1 2 0 Antoine Walker 38 6-17 1-3 0-0 13 4-10 8 2 2 2 2 Dirk Nowitzki 42 6-10 2-3 4-4 18 2-17 4 4 3 0 0 Michael Finley 41 9-15 5-7 1-2 24 0-3 0 1 3 0 1 Steve Nash 41 6-14 3-6 1-1 16 1-4 10 2 1 2 0 Antawn Jamison 26 5-14 0-1 4-4 14 7-8 1 1 5 0 0 Tony Delk 7 2-4 0-0 0-0 4 0-0 1 2 2 1 0 Danny Fortson 2 0-0 0-0 0-0 0 0-0 0 0 1 0 0 Totals 48 40-86 11-20 13-14 104 16-48 24 18 18 7 3 Memphis Grizzlies REB Player MIN FGM-FGA 3PM-3PA FTM-FTA PTS O-T AST TO PF STL BLK Pau Gasol 19 5-10 0-0 0-0 10 2-4 0 1 1 0 0 James Posey 32 5-13 2-6 2-2 14 1-3 2 3 3 1 0 Lorenzen Wright 32 6-9 0-0 2-2 14 4-12 3 1 2 0 1 Jason Williams 19 2-5 0-2 0-0 4 0-0 1 1 1 0 0 Mike Miller 17 1-5 1-3 0-0 3 0-1 3 1 1 1 0 Bonzi Wells 31 12-26 0-5 6-9 30 3-7 5 2 4 2 2 Stromile Swift 16 1-5 0-0 2-4 4 2-7 1 0 0 1 1 Shane Battier 16 1-2 0-0 1-1 3 1-2 0 0 3 2 0 Bo Outlaw 29 5-7 0-0 0-0 10 4-7 1 0 1 2 1 Earl Watson 29 3-9 0-3 0-0 6 1-2 7 2 2 4 0 Totals 48 41-91 3-19 13-18 98 18-45 23 11 18 13 5 patricia