Mavericks at Spurs
The San Antonio Spurs remain unbeaten at home but have looked vulnerable in the last two victories. The Dallas Mavericks will try to become the first team to win in San Antonio since last March when they visit the Spurs on Sunday.
San Antonio survived a last-second shot in a 100-99 win over the New York Knicks and then battled back for a 99-95 victory over the Cleveland Cavaliers in the last two home games to run its record to 23-0 in front of the friendly fans. The Spurs are winners of 10 straight overall and have seen an offensive resurgence from Tony Parker, who averaged 27.5 points in the last two games. The Mavericks lost in Oklahoma City to begin the road trip but bounced back on Friday by locking down on the defensive end in an 83-77 win at the Chicago Bulls. Wesley Matthews and a host of Dallas defenders limited Chicago star Jimmy Butler to four points one night after he went for 53, and will set their sights on Parker and company on Sunday.
TV: 7 p.m. ET, FSN Southwest (Dallas, San Antonio)
ABOUT THE MAVERICKS (23-18): Dallas is enduring a rough section of the schedule and allowed an average of 109 points in losses to Cleveland and the Thunder before holding Chicago to 36 percent from the floor. “Defensively, I thought we were solid all night,” Mavericks forward Dirk Nowitzki told reporters. “In the beginning we weren’t making shots, but the defense was there solid enough to keep us in the game.” Nowitzki posted a team-high 21 points in the win and has gone for 20 or more in five of his last six games.
ABOUT THE SPURS (35-6): Parker is no longer asked to carry the load offensively for San Antonio and is averaging 13.1 points – his lowest mark since his 2001-02 rookie campaign – but the veteran point guard knows how to pick his spots. “I just got going and my teammates were setting picks and (coach Gregg Popovich) kept calling my number,” Parker told reporters after dropping 24 points on Cleveland. “So I was just being aggressive because we had a hard time getting it going in the first half.” Parker is 24-of-37 from the floor in the last two games and is shooting 53.4 percent on the season.
BUZZER BEATERS
1. Mavericks PG Deron Williams went 4-of-5 from 3-point range on Friday after going 0-of-7 from beyond the arc in his previous three games.
2. San Antonio has won 32 straight home games, tying the 1996-97 Chicago Bulls for eighth on the all-time list.
3. The home team has taken eight straight in the series.