The Dallas Mavericks have a pair of games left to stake their claim to the second seed in the Western Conference. Tonight the Southwest Division champs visit Staples Center to take on the Los Angeles Clippers.
The Mavs are coming off a rather easy 126-108 win over Sacramento on Saturday. Dirk Nowitzki scored 22 of his 39 points in the third quarter and Jason Kidd recorded a triple-double in that one, as Dallas routed the Kings.
Nowitzki made 13-of-13 free throws to extend his free throw streak to 68, while Kidd ended with 13 assists, 11 points and 10 rebounds to help Dallas win its third straight overall.
"I feel great," Nowitzki said. "I'm just really ready for a hopefully fun and long playoff run."
Jason Terry added 25 points off the bench for the Mavericks, who are in sole possession of the second spot in the West, a game ahead of Denver, Utah and Phoenix. The Southwest kings are already assured of finishing no worse than fourth in the West.
After tonight's game, Dallas will finish the regular season at home vs. San Antonio on Wednesday.
The Clips, meanwhile, are coming off a hard-fought win over Pacific Division rival Golden State on Saturday. Chris Kaman logged 27 points and 10 rebounds and Steve Novak hit a key three-pointer down the stretch in that one to push the Clippers to a 107-104 victory.
Baron Davis scored 21 points before leaving the game in the third quarter with a sprained right wrist, while Rasual Butler had 15 points and eight boards for Los Angeles, which snapped a seven-game losing streak.
"It was good to get the monkey off our back," Clippers interim head coach Kim Hughes said. "We had a super effort by our bigs."
The Mavs have won five straight games over the Clips. who will finish their season against their co-tenants at Staples Center, the LA Lakers, on Wednesday.
