Mavs win streak reaches 13, down Spurs

Jan 6, 2007, 5:00 GMT

San Antonio, TX - Dirk Nowitzki poured in a season-high 36 points and Josh Howard came up huge with 18 points and 12 rebounds, as Dallas stretched its winning streak to 13 games with a 90-85 decision over the Spurs.

Nowitzki and Howard were the only two Dallas players in double figures, but the Mavericks were able to rally from a 12-point second-quarter deficit.

Dallas, which is 27-3 since losing its first four games of the season, can equal a franchise record for its longest winning streak with a triumph over Kobe Bryant and the Lakers Sunday night in Los Angeles. The Mavericks won 14 in a row to start the 2002-03 season.

Manu Ginobili had 25 points to lead the Spurs, who trail Dallas by four games for first place in the Southwest Division. Tim Duncan had 18 points, but hurt the Spurs by going just 6-of-13 from the free-throw line.

It also marked a two-game sweep for the Mavs at San Antonio this season, as Dallas squeaked out a 95-92 victory November 24.

'Dirk is a warrior,' Mavericks coach Avery Johnson said. 'He guarded Tim Duncan very well tonight. In my opinion Dirk never gets enough credit and hopefully that will change soon. Dirk is defiantly a player who lets his game do all the talking.'

Nowitzki hit a driving finger roll to tie the game at 82 with 2:27 left, and after Ginobili missed a shot, the Mavs took the lead with a second opportunity. Nowitzki fired up an air-ball, but Howard got it under the basket and laid it in with 1:44 left.

Duncan then had his pocket picked in the lane by Nowitzki, who in turn fed Devean George for a reverse layup with 1:16 left.

Duncan banked in a shot, but Nowitzki moved the margin to 88-84 with 40.3 seconds to go on a jumper from the left elbow. Duncan then missed a foul shot, but the Spurs got another opportunity to tie after Nowitzki threw the ball into the stands trying to go to Devin Harris.

However, Bruce Bowen missed a three-pointer from the right corner, and Howard nailed two free throws in the final second to seal the victory.

'We needed it badly, but we just couldn't take it,' Ginobili said. 'We just have to give them credit and realize that we have to improve a lot. The good thing is the season is young still, we have a long way to go so we've got a big challenge here.'

Tony Parker added 15 points and Fabricio Oberto 14 for the Spurs, losers of a season-high three in a row. It's their longest skid since March 20-23, 2005.

'We never panic,' Duncan said. 'There's always time to panic. We are 34 games into the season. You have to go through ups and downs in a season to build a team and build character in a team. This is our down time and hopefully we can cut it off at this.'

The Spurs led 29-21 after the opening quarter and stretched the margin to 33-21 following a layup by Oberto. Dallas trailed 51-40 at the half after Oberto's tip-in at the end of the second quarter.

Howard and Nowitzki rallied the Mavs in the second half though. Howard's three-pointer brought Dallas within 62-60 in the final two minutes of the third and the Mavs trailed 69-66 going into the fourth.

'Tonight the first half killed us,' Howard said. 'We fought our way into the second half and finally got things together. Coach Johnson has a lot of trust in this team and I think tonight we earned a little more.'

Ginobili's three-point play extended San Antonio to a 77-73 lead with 8:37 remaining, but the Mavericks responded with the next seven points. Nowitzki drained a jumper for a 78-77 lead and George's layup made it a three-point contest. The Spurs though came back with the next five points and it remained tight over the final three minutes.

Game Notes

These teams will meet once more, April 15 in Dallas.

The Spurs went 21-of-31 at the foul line.

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