Mavericks Take Care Of Business 99-91

Dirk Nowitzki and the Mavericks were able to handle the Kings in Sacramento, with a battle with the Los Angeles Lakers looming tomorrow night.(AP Photo/Steve Yeater)

Sometimes these Mavs make routine victories look excruciatingly difficult.

The Dallas Mavericks (23-10) held the Sacramento Kings (14-19) to 40 percent shooting on the night but had to re-insert Dirk Nowitzki late as the Kings got the lead down to six points with 28 seconds remaining. Dallas led by double-digits for the majority of the second half but mental errors late led to a Kings 11-0 run that made things a little too close for comfort for the Mavs. Dallas made six free-throws in the final 28 seconds to seal the victory.

Dallas used a 13-0 run in the second quarter to go up 42-31 and never trailed after that. The Mavericks ran the Kings out of the arena in the first half with 18 fast break points. Dallas finished the game with 24 fast break points, their most in a game since Dec. 2 against the Nets (26).

Rookie Omri Casspi led Sacramento with 22 points and a career high 11 rebounds. After missing last night's game against the L.A. Lakers, another rookie, Tyreke Evans, had a rough night. Evans went 6-18 from the floor for 14 points, although he did contribute six assists and five rebounds in 38 minutes.

Nowitzki led Dallas with a game-high 25 points along with seven rebounds on the night. Five Mavs scored in double-figures along with Jason Kidd who had 14 points and seven assists while making six of his seven shot attempts, including 2-2 on three's.

Josh Howard Tries To Give Game Away Late

Up until the last 1:15 of the game, J-Ho had played pretty well with 14 points off the bench. In that final 1:15 Howard missed a pass from J.J. Barea and then stupidly fouled Casspi, which put the Kings at the line - stopping the clock and allowing them to get an easy two points.

Howard wasn't done yet. He committed two turnovers (one literally three game seconds after the dumb foul) that kept the Kings within a couple of buckets of victory. The second, with Dallas up 97-91 with eight seconds left and the Kings obviously trying to foul, Howard launched a pass from half court that went about five feet over 6'10 Drew Gooden and into the stands.

If Howard wants to get back into the starting lineup, he is going to have to play smarter - especially with the game on the line.

Dallas' Stout Defense

For the first time in the past 12 games, the Sacramento Kings were held under 100 points. The Kings came into tonight's game averaging 104 points a game and 47 percent shooting. The Mavericks weren't having any of that, forcing the Kings into 16 turnovers. Dallas had 11 steals and three blocks for the game, holding the Kings to 40 percent shooting in the process.

Barea Bounces Back

After a sub-par game against the Rockets (four points, 17 percent shooting), J.J. Barea had 17 points on 7-13 shooting. JJB got off to a hot start, scoring nine of the Mavs first 13 points.

Barea had scored 17 points in his last two games combined, so this was a good sign that the last couple of games were an aberration.

Whats Next

It appears Dirk Nowitzki is back on track, trying to get a feel for how much he can test his injured right elbow. While the Dallas defense looks capable of taking on anyone after holding one of the league's best offensive teams to one of their lowest scoring outputs of the season. Sacramento's tenacity shows how tough it is to play in the Western Conference on a nightly basis. They have two Rookie of the Year candidates on that team (Evans, Casspi) and they have only the 13th best record in the conference. It's tough in the West!

On to the main event. Dallas has a tough test tomorrow night in L.A. as they take on the 26-6 Lakers at The Staples Center. One of those six Lakers' losses came at the hands of these Mavericks, in L.A., one of only three home defeats this season.

The Lakers average 104.1 points a game led by the league leader in scoring, Kobe Bryant (30.9). However, Dallas held L.A. to their second-lowest scoring output of the season (80) in their previous meeting, so this should be a great matchup.

Tip-off is at 8:30 p.m. and can be seen locally on KXTA channel 21.

News and Notes:

• The Mavericks are third in the NBA in opponent's field goal percentage, holding opponents to only 43.8 percent shooting per game. The L.A. Lakers are second at 43.6.
• Dallas has won four straight against the Kings, dating back to Jan. 11, 2009.
• The Mavericks have won three of their past four games.
• The Mavs have lost five of their last three of their four games in L.A. against the Lakers.