Nowitzki, Nash give Mavericks edge over Nets

Reuters, Dallas, Texas

Dirk Nowitzki and Steve Nash both scored 24 points to lead the Dallas Mavericks past the New Jersey Nets 88-79 in NBA action on Tuesday.

Nowitzki also hauled down 13 rebounds for the Mavericks, while Nash added eight assists as Dallas won its second straight game to improve to an NBA best 46-14.

The Nets committed 22 turnovers as they slipped to 38-23, still the second best winning percentage in the Eastern Conference.

Michael Finley added 15 points for Dallas, which managed just 60 points in the first three quarters.

Kenyon Martin, a Dallas native, had 17 points and nine rebounds for the Nets, while Jason Kidd had 13 points and seven rebounds.

Aaron Williams added 13 points and eight rebounds.

Dallas now has 26 wins at home, tying New Jersey for the NBA lead.

In San Antonio, Stephon Marbury scored 35 points and had 13 assists as the Phoenix Suns upended the San Antonio Spurs 104-97.

Amare Stoudemire added 17 points and 11 rebounds for the Suns, while Shawn Marion also had 17 points.

Tim Duncan led the Spurs with 35 points, 21 rebounds and eight assists as San Antonio's four-game winnings streak was snapped.

In Washington, Vince Carter had 24 points to lead the Toronto Raptors past the Washington Wizards 89-86.

Michael Jordan left the game with back spasms in the second quarter and didn't return. He is to be reevaluated on Wednesday.

Voshon Lenard scored all of his 14 points in the final 12 minutes to lead the Raptors, who have won eight of their last 12. Jerry Stackhouse added 21 points for Washington.

In New York, Allan Houston scored 25 points to lead the Knicks past the Cleveland Cavaliers 89-80.

Kurt Thomas added 17 points for New York, while Latrell Sprewell had 15 and Howard Eisley chipped in 14.

Ricky Davis had 24 points for Cleveland, which has lost nine of its last 10 games.

In Atlanta, Shareef Abdur-Rahim had 30 points and 10 rebounds to lead the Hawks to a 92-86 win over the slumping Denver Nuggets.

Jason Terry added 17 points and had 12 assists for the Hawks, who are 17-12 at home and 6-26 on the road.

Juwan Howard had 20 points for the Nuggets, who have lost 13 games in a row. Nene Hilario added 14 for Denver.

In Detroit, Richard Hamilton scored 26 points as the Pistons ended a seven-game losing streak with a 96-83 win over the Houston Rockets.

Chauncey Billups added 21 points for Detroit, while Jon Barry had 13 points.

Cuttino Mobley led Houston with 25 points and Yao Ming added 20, but the Rockets still lost their fourth straight game.

In Miami, Sam Cassell scored 25 points to lead the Milwaukee Bucks to a 100-91 win over the Heat.

Gary Payton and Desmond Mason both added 17 points for the Bucks, who improved to .500 at 30-30.

Brian Grant scored 20 points and had 12 rebounds for the Heat, while Caron Butler added 15.

Malik Allen added 14 points and 12 rebounds for Miami.

In Seattle, Ray Allen scored 29 points as the SuperSonics ended Minnesota's seven-game winning streak, downing the Timberwolves 92-83.

Brent Barry added 19 points for Seattle, which is 6-1 since trading Gary Payton to Milwaukee for Allen, who also had nine rebounds and six assists.

Rashard Lewis chipped in 17 points for the winners.

Kevin Garnett had 22 points and 11 rebounds for Minnesota, but scored just two points in the fourth quarter. Troy Hudson had 21 points for the Timberwolves.

In Oakland, Gary Arenas scored 22 points and had nine assists to lead the Golden State Warriors to a 107-100 win over the Indiana Pacers.

Jason Richardson and Erick Dampier both added 20 points for Golden State, which has won six straight games.

Ron Artest scored 32 points for the Pacers, who are just 13-18 on the road this season.

Jermaine O'Neal added 21 points for Indiana, while Brad Miller had 10 points and 11 rebounds.