Mavericks-Hornets Preview

By JEFF BARTL
Posted Mar 02 2012 1:37PM

A hobbled Dirk Nowitzki isn't ideal for the slumping Dallas Mavericks, who have few off days for him to recover during a busy stretch.

They haven't needed much - or any - production from Nowitzki when facing the New Orleans Hornets this season, though.

The defending NBA champions are in a slump and unsure of the status of their superstar for Friday night's matchup at New Orleans.

Dallas' stretch of nine games in 12 days has gotten off to a rough start, beginning with a 93-92 home loss to New Jersey on Tuesday. It got worse in Wednesday's 96-85 defeat at Memphis when Nowitzki left early in the second quarter with lower back tightness that originated in pregame warmups.

Coach Rick Carlisle said Nowitzki's status for Friday is questionable.

"He felt something in warmups and tried to play," Carlisle said. "He clearly wasn't moving the way he needed to be moving, so we pulled the plug. He'll get treatment and we'll see where we're at Friday."

The loss was the third straight overall for the Mavericks (21-15), matching a season high. While Jason Terry and Rodrigue Beaubois combined for 34 points off the bench, Brendan Haywood was the only starter in double figures with 10.

The Mavericks average 94.0 points but were held to their lowest total in five games with Nowitzki missing most of the contest. Fellow starting forward Shawn Marion has struggled during the three-game skid, shooting 28.9 percent while averaging 8.7 points.

They should have a good chance to end their rough stretch against the Western Conference-worst Hornets - with or without Nowitzki.

Dallas beat New Orleans 96-81 on Jan. 7 despite 10 points and 2-for-11 shooting from Nowitzki, then escaped with an 83-81 win over the Hornets on Jan. 21 as Nowitzki sat out with a sore right knee.

The Mavericks, though, had Lamar Odom for both of those games, but his leave of absence for personal reasons has decreased the team's depth. Odom has missed the past three games, and the team said Friday he will play at least one in the D-League before returning to the Mavs.

New Orleans (8-27) also is short-handed, missing Eric Gordon and Emeka Okafor due to injuries, and has dropped four of five. Wednesday's 95-84 loss to Toronto dropped the Hornets to 3-15 at home.

Jarrett Jack came off the bench for the sixth consecutive game due to sore knees which caused him to miss six of the previous seven. He scored 10 points but shot 3 for 12, then took blame for the defeat.

"I'm going to put this one on my shoulders squarely," Jack said. "This team looks to me for a lot, and I have to be the captain. I want to be that guy. I want the ball."

Marco Belinelli scored 20 points and Chris Kaman added 17 with 10 rebounds for his third straight double-double for the Hornets, who average a conference-low 88.2 points. They were outscored 33-15 in the fourth quarter Wednesday.

New Orleans' offensive woes may not bode well against a Dallas team holding opponents to a West-low 91.0 points per game.

Dallas has won three straight meetings, which is the longest winning streak for either team in the series since the Mavericks won 21 straight from 2000-07.

Hornets surprise Mavericks 97-92

Posted Mar 03 2012 12:34AM

NEW ORLEANS (AP) Jarrett Jack blamed himself for the New Orleans Hornets' loss to Toronto on Wednesday, saying he failed to take over down the stretch.

He did not have to wait long to make a correction.

Jack scored six straight points in the final 1:09 and hit an 11-foot shot in traffic with 17.9 seconds left to secure the Hornets' 97-92 win against the slumping Dallas Mavericks on Friday night.

"We were up two and Coach (Monty Williams) called a timeout," he said. "I went up to him and told him I am ready and just give it to me. I don't know if he heard it, but I had the confidence in myself to knock down the shot."

Chris Kaman had 20 points and 13 rebounds for his fourth consecutive double-double for the Hornets, who dressed nine players.

Xavier Henry added a season-high 19 points off the bench, and Jack, who started for the first time in seven games, finished with 15 points and six assists.

Dirk Nowitzki added 19 points, but was only 7 of 19 from the floor and did not shoot a free throw as Dallas lost a season-high fourth in a row.

Rodrigue Beaubois had a season-high 25 points for Dallas, making 11 of 17 shots after starting for the first time in 13 games.

Jason Terry was one of nine from the field, and Jason Kidd had only one field goal.

"We have to fight our way out of this," Mavericks coach Rick Carlisle said. "They played a great game. All 48 minutes, they just played harder than us."

The Hornets led for the entire second half, but needed Jack's plays at the end to hold on for the win.

His fadeaway jumper with 1:07 left gave them a 91-84 lead.

After Nowitzki hit a 3-pointer and threw a long pass to Beaubois for a layup, cutting the deficit to 91-89, Jack responded with his big shot. He then made two free throws to make the score 95-89 after Vince Carter missed a step-back 3-pointer.

"I did not do a good job of taking care of the ball, but I had the ball in my hands," said Jack, who finished with five turnovers. "My teammates had confidence to put the ball in my hands."

Trailing 82-70 with 8:30 left, Dallas made it close with a 10-0 run. Carter's 3-pointer stated it.

After both teams endured nearly a three-minute drought, Kaman was called for goaltending on a Shawn Marion floater, Nowitzki hit a fallback jumper and Beaubois converted a 3-point play when he threw the ball high off the backboard and was fouled on a driving layup.

The Hornets responded with a 9-4 run. Solomon Jones hit a mid-range shot from the baseline. Henry stole a Nowitzki pass and cruised in for a dunk.

New Orleans outrebounded Dallas 50-34, getting 17 second-chance points to the Mavericks' seven.

"The game was won on the boards," said Dallas center Brendan Haywood, who had four points and seven rebounds. "If we do a better job there, we win this game."

Dallas cut into a six-point halftime deficit in the third quarter but never went ahead.

With the Mavs trailing 68-67, Nowitzki had a shot go in and out. Terry missed a 3-pointer that would have tied the score at 72.

The Hornets then went on a 10-1 run.

"Guys were real in tune with what we were doing scheme-wise," Jack said. "We just didn't have many breakdowns tonight. That allowed us a chance to win."

Kaman and Henry took turns scoring in the first half as New Orleans led 52-46 at the break.

Kaman hit six shots in a row to start the game, scoring 13 of the Hornets' first 19 points. Then Henry got hot, connecting on six of seven. His 13 points in the second quarter surpassed his season high of 12 for a game.

Dallas trailed 41-30 before Kidd sparked a 12-0 spurt with a 3-pointer. Carter followed with a driving dunk, and Marion dunked off an inbounds pass to give the Mavericks a brief 44-43 lead.

Nowitzki, who was questionable with a back injury that forced him out of the Mavs' game with Memphis in the second quarter on Wednesday night, made a 3-pointer on his first attempt, banked in a 3 a little later and hit two more 3s the final 61 seconds of the game.

Notes: The Hornets played without starting forward Trevor Ariza, who was ill. ... Dallas played the third game of a stretch when it has nine games in 12 days. ... The Hornets' 97 points were 16 more than they had in the teams' first two meetings, which the Mavs won 96-81 and 83-81.

Notebook: Hornets 97, Mavericks 92

Posted Friday March 2, 2012 11:05PM

By Larry Holder, for NBA.com

THE FACTS: Center Chris Kaman continued to show solid play, which may get him traded eventually, as he scored 20 points and grabbed 13 rebounds as the New Orleans Hornets defeated the Dallas Mavericks 97-92 on Friday night in the New Orleans Arena. The Mavs have lost four consecutive games.

QUOTABLE: "Like I told our guys this morning, we are a work team. We had a practice this morning, which takes me back to my days with Pat Riley. We'd practice an hour, an hour and a half before the game. I saw tons of carryover from that practice."
-- Hornets head coach Monty Williams.

THE STAT: Mavs forward Dirk Nowitzki typically lives on the free-throw line. That wasn't the case at all against the Hornets as Nowitzki didn't shoot a single free throw. He ended the game going 7 of 19 from the floor for 19 points.

TURNING POINT: Dallas went on a 14-2 run late in the second quarter to turn an 11-point deficit into a one-point lead. New Orleans never relented, though, as it took the lead the lead shortly thereafter and never trailed again despite a dicey fourth quarter.

HOT: Hornets reserve guard Xavier Henry had the best game of his short time in New Orleans. He scored a career-high 19 points off the bench on 8 of 12 shooting. Henry has been quite hit or miss throughout his time in New Orleans, but he's shown spurts of solid play recently.

NOT: The Mavs were dominated on the boards against a Hornets team with several injured frontcourt players not playing. New Orleans crushed Dallas in rebounds as it outrebounded the Mavs 50-34.

QUOTABLE II: "We've got to fight our way out (of the slump). It comes down to that. The margins of error are very slim. Again, we had probably four or five turnovers that were uncharacteristic and untimely, careless, that make a big difference in a one-possession game."
-- Mavs head coach Rick Carlisle.

INSIDE THE ARENA: Actors Samuel L. Jackson and Jamie Foxx attended Friday night's game in the New Orleans Arena.

NOTABLE: Carlisle started guard Rodrigue Beaubois instead of Vince Carter. The move paid off despite the loss as Beaubois scored a game-high 25 points. ... Mavs forward Lamar Odom (personal reasons) will return to action Saturday night in the D-League, Carlisle said, as he missed his fourth consecutive game Friday night. "He's working the next two days and the plan is that he'll join us and travel Sunday to Oklahoma City (who the Mavs play Monday)," Carlisle said. Odom hasn't fit in with the Mavs on a consistent basis throughout much of the season. When asked what Odom has to do to become a consistent contributor for the Mavs, Carlisle said, "He's got to come back and play his ass off. He's got to play hard. He's got to be into it. That's it." ... Hornets forward Trevor Ariza missed Friday's game with an illness. Forward Al-Farouq Aminu started in his place. Other Hornets missing the Mavs game because of injuries were center Emeka Okafor (knee), forward Jason Smith (concussion), forward Carl Landry (knee) and guard Eric Gordon (knee).

UP NEXT: For the Mavs, Saturday vs. Utah, Monday @ Oklahoma City, Tuesday vs. New York. For the Hornets, Saturday vs. Indiana, Monday @ Portland, Wednesday @ Sacramento.

• Mavericks: Odom, Williams
• Hornets: Gordon

• Mavericks: --
• Hornets: --

• Lead Changes: 5
• Times Tied: 2

• Arena: New Orleans Arena, New Orleans, LA
• Officials: #17 Joe Crawford, #77 Karl Lane, #59 Gary Zielinski, #43 Dan Crawford
• Attendance: 15568
• Duration: 2:09