Mavericks hang on to defeat Trail Blazers
PORTLAND, Ore. -- Damian Lillard's 3-point attempt bounced off the rim at the buzzer, and the Dallas Mavericks escaped with a 96-95 victory over the Portland Trail Blazers Wednesday night at Moda Center.
Lillard scored 24 of his 29 points in the second half as the Trail Blazers (13-18) rallied from a 24-point halftime deficit. Allen Crabbe came off the bench for 14 points for Portland, which lost its fourth straight game and eighth in the last nine contests.
Harrison Barnes went for 28 points and Deron Williams collected 23 points, five rebounds and five assists for the Mavericks (8-21).
Williams scored 17 points on 7-for-10 shooting and Barnes added 14 points for the Mavericks, who shot .500 in the first half in mounting a 62-38 lead. The Blazers shot only .378 from the field and had 11 turnovers at the break. Backcourt mates Lillard and CJ McCollum were a combined 3 for 16 from the field.
Dallas stoked its advantage to 69-44 early in the third quarter, but Portland used a 19-4 surge to get to within 73-61 late in the quarter. With Lillard scoring 20 in the quarter, the Blazers closed the gap to 81-71 heading into the final period.
Portland cut the difference to 81-75 early in the fourth quarter. Mason Plumlee's three-point play trimmed it to 90-85 with 3:54 remaining. Then Crabbe rimmed in a 3-pointer to make it 90-88 with 2:41 left.
Williams knocked down a jumper for a 92-88 lead with 2:24 to play, but Al-Farouq Aminu buried a 3, and it was 92-91 with 2:08 to go.
Wesley Matthews scored off a steal to give Dallas a 94-91 bulge, but McCollum converted a drive and Portland was within 94-93 with 1:22 left.
Williams answered with a jumper for a 96-93 advantage with 1:01 remaining. Lillard's driving layup with 45 seconds to go cut it to 96-95. Dallas let the shot clock expire, and Portland called timeout with 20.3 seconds to go. Lillard drove but turned the ball over with 12.9 ticks left.
Then Williams threw away the in-bounds pass, and the Blazers called timeout again with 9.8 seconds remaining. That set up Lillard's final attempt from beyond the arc, and it was not to be.
Dallas jumped out to a 9-2 start, then increased it to 24-12 as Portland started 4 for 15 from the field. The Mavericks settled for a 30-20 lead after one quarter.
The difference was 42-25 five minutes into the second quarter, and Dallas increased the margin to 24 points at the break.
NOTES: Dallas F Dirk Nowitzki (Achilles tendon) hasn't played since Nov. 25, but he will work out with teammates Thursday. Coach Rick Carlisle isn't ruling out a return for the Friday game against the Los Angeles Clippers at Staples Center. "Signs are good, but we're going to be cautious with him," Carlisle said. ... Dallas C Andrew Bogut, who missed his ninth consecutive game due to a knee injury, isn't expected back until the end of December at the earliest. ... Portland was without F Evan Turner (ankle) for the second straight game. F Al-Farouq Aminu (back) returned to action after missing the previous four games. ... The Mavericks are now 2-13 on the road.