Nuggets at Mavericks
After a two-point win in Denver on Saturday, the Nuggets head to Dallas to complete a home-and-home series with the Mavericks. Randy Foye's 3-pointer lifted the Nuggets past Dallas in the last meeting, giving Denver its second straight win. Coach Brian Shaw told the Denver Post he was happy with the win but is looking for his team to play as a more cohesive unit moving forward.
Playing the second of back-to-back games after a win over Utah on Friday, the Mavericks were sluggish in Denver, falling behind by 13 points after the opening quarter. "I thought we were garbage in the first half," forward Dirk Nowitzki, who led all scorers with 27 points, told the Dallas Morning News. Monta Ellis had 25 in the loss and leads Dallas, averaging 23.6 points and 5.4 assists.
TV: 8:30 p.m. ET, Altitude (Denver), FSN Southwest (Dallas)
ABOUT THE NUGGETS (6-6): Shaw was upset with what he dubbed selfish play on Saturday. "We got (3-pointer) crazy and just started throwing up threes," he said. "Guys started splintering and pointing the finger at one another when they weren't getting the ball." Ty Lawson, who averages 20.8 points to lead Denver, had 20 against Dallas on Friday and added nine assists.
ABOUT THE MAVERICKS (9-5): Nowitzki had a chance to send Saturday's game to overtime but, with Foye in his face, his jumper at the buzzer bounced off the rim. Dallas trailed by as many as 17 and battling back as they did, despite the loss, showed an important team characteristic according to point guard Jose Calderon. "This is not a team that's just going to let it go," he said. "We're going to keep fighting until the end."
BUZZER BEATERS
1. The Mavericks are 7-0 at home this season.
2. Denver has beaten Dallas three of the last four times in the head-to-head series.
3. Mavericks coach Rick Carlisle was ejected on Saturday for arguing with officials over what he thought should have been a flagrant foul call on Foye.