Sunday, April 6, 2008
Dallas Mavericks 105, Phoenix Suns 98
The Dallas Mavericks finally, dramatically closed out a game against a good team Sunday afternoon, using a huge fourth quarter spurt to come back in a 105-98 victory in Phoenix. Down by 13 at one point in the final quarter, the Mavs stormed back with a 16-0 run that sealed the deal against the vaunted Suns.
The win was just the second against a winning team since the Kidd trade, and bucked a recent trend where Dallas could not hold onto a lead in the final seconds. Dallas is now 48-29, and has a little breathing room over the Golden State Warriors and Denver Nuggets for the #7 seed in the Western Conference.
Dirk Nowitzki led all scorers once again, putting up 31 points on 11-of-23 shooting, while also making the Suns pay for fouls by going 9-for-10 from the charity stripe. Nowitzki also snagged 12 rebounds and two steals.
Josh Howard continued his point-producing ways, putting up 24 points and 9 rebounds. Brandon Bass scored 19 off the bench despite foul trouble, while Jason Kidd managed 8 points, 6 rebounds, 7 assists and four steals.
Kidd's counterpart on the Suns, Steve Nash, scored 15 points with ten assists but also five costly turnovers.
Posted by Todd M.
