Mavericks 93, Jazz 81
Dirk Nowitzki scored 26 points and the Dallas Mavericks began the fourth quarter with 11 straight points to pull away for a 93-81 victory over the host Utah Jazz on Friday.
Caron Butler scored 16 points as Dallas (15-4) extended its winning streak to eight games while snapping the seven-game winning streak of the Jazz (15-6).
Nowitzki scored five points during the run that saw Dallas increase a four-point lead into a 77-62 advantage less than three minutes into the final quarter.
Paul Millsap had 21 points and Al Jefferson scored 18 points for Utah.
Jason Kidd added 15 points and seven assists for the Mavericks. Jason Terry contributed 12 points, five assists and five steals.
The Mavericks shot 52.6 percent from the field and held Utah to 39.2 percent.
Utah’s Deron Williams scored just 12 points after averaging 25.4 points over Utah’s previous five games.