Mavericks at Nuggets
The Dallas Mavericks keep sliding in the wrong direction and aim to get
back on the winning track when they visit the Denver Nuggets on Monday.
Slumping Dallas has lost 10 of its last 12 games and sits in ninth place
in the Western Conference — a half-game behind the eighth-place Houston
Rockets and one full game in back of the seventh-place Utah Jazz.
The Mavericks were thumped 133-111 by the Sacramento Kings on Sunday and the 133 points are the most the club has allowed all season. "We've got to decide if we want to go home after the last (regular-season) game or not," shooting guard Wesley Matthews told reporters. "Do we want to keep playing for something or not? Do we want to lay everything out on the line every single night nine more times and let the chips fall?" The Nuggets are 7-5 in their last 12 games after dropping a 105-90 decision to the Los Angeles Clippers on Sunday. Denver is playing five of its next seven games at home as it seeks to continue its strong finish.
TV: 9 p.m. ET, FSN Southwest (Dallas), Altitude 2 (Denver)
ABOUT THE MAVERICKS (35-38): Point guard Deron Williams will miss his third straight contest because of an abdominal strain. Williams aggravated the injury during Wednesday's loss to Portland and was sent back to Dallas for further evaluation when the soreness persisted. "It's definitely frustrating right now," Williams told reporters. "We need every game we can get. It's no time to be sitting out. If I didn't feel like I'd be hurting myself and my team by being out there, I'd definitely want to be out there."
ABOUT THE NUGGETS (31-43): Second-year guard Gary Harris scored 11 points against the Clippers to stretch his run of double-digit scoring performances to 17 straight. Harris is averaging 15.5 points during the span and has reached 20 points just once while being consistently good. "Just figuring out times when I need to be aggressive and times when I can hunt for my shot," Harris told reporters. "I think we're doing a good job of just looking for teammates to get me in spots where I can score."
BUZZER BEATERS
1. The Mavericks have lost in five of their last six visits to Denver.
2. Dallas PF Dirk Nowitzki had just 14 points against the Kings after scoring 20 or more points in each of his last nine games.
3. Denver PF Kenneth Faried (back) has missed the past six contests.