HOUSTON - The Mavericks may not have the split personality of - oh, let's say the Cowboys' offense - but they're certainly becoming competitive. Just 24 hours after looking like they didn't belong in the NBA, the Mavericks threw a hammer down on the Houston Rockets, pounding out a 130-99 victory Wednesday night at Toyota Center. It was a rousing start to a tough, three-game road trip and a terrific way to remove the stench of the fourth-quarter meltdown Tuesday at home.
The Mavericks got huge nights off the bench from Tim Thomas and Jason Terry. It was Thomas who threw down a massive follow dunk of a Terry miss with 2.7 seconds to go in the third quarter that stalled a Houston rally and put the Mavericks up 91-77 going into the final 12 minutes.
The lead never dipped below double figures, and the Mavericks avoided what would have been their first losing streak of the season.
After each of their four losses, they have responded with a double-digit victory.
Terry finished with 27 points, Thomas had 23 and Dirk Nowitzki canned 25.
And they were part of history, as Jason Kidd climbed another notch in the NBA record book. With his fifth assist, which came early in the third quarter, Kidd passed Mark Jackson for second on the NBA's all-time list. He trails only John Stockton on the assist rankings.
None of which had mattered if the Mavericks hadn't rebounded strongly. Interestingly, after they finished the Golden State game by getting outscored 22-5, they opened against the Rockets trailing 15-2.
At that point, their charter flight finally seemed to show up.
A 26-0 power surge that ended with a Thomas 3-pointer to start the second quarter set the Mavericks on their way to a 39-25 lead that never really was in danger.
Thomas and Terry each had 15 points off the bench in the first half. It was plainly evident that they were just a bit grumpy from the events of the Warrior game.
Once they were up, the Mavericks never lifted a foot off the Rockets' necks.
They got more good news with the return of Shawn Marion after missing three games with a sore left ankle.
Injury update: Quinton Ross remained in Dallas to have his lower back examined. Ross tweaked the back in the first half Tuesday.
Coach Rick Carlisle said Ross would rejoin the team in Indianapolis.
Meanwhile, Erick Dampier is with the team, and Carlisle sounded as if the return of the 6-11 center could be sooner than later.
As for a clarification on Dampier's health issue, Carlisle said: "I apologize for keep telling you it'll be soon, but it's coming soon," he said. "Generally speaking, we're optimistic. I can say that."
Dampier is unlikely to play on the remainder of this road trip, but could see action at some point next week.
Briefly: The Mavericks will enjoy a team Thanksgiving dinner today in Indianapolis, but take the day off from practicing in the middle of four games in five nights.
DALLAS 36 32 23 39 - 130
HOUSTON 25 26 26 22 - 99
DALLAS Min FG
M-A FT
M-A Reb
O-T A PF PTS
Totals 240:00 55-84 11-14 7-36 33 18 130
Marion 30:49 5-9 2-4 0-3 1 4 12
Nowitzki 36:21 10-16 5-6 2-8 1 1 25
Gooden 21:22 5-8 0-0 0-5 0 2 10
Kidd 29:29 4-7 0-0 0-2 7 0 9
Beaubois 16:37 3-7 0-0 1-1 1 1 6
Terry 31:49 10-11 3-3 0-2 10 2 27
Thomas 24:30 9-13 1-1 1-4 3 6 23
Humphries 15:47 4-5 0-0 2-5 0 1 8
Barea 26:42 4-7 0-0 0-5 9 0 8
Carroll 3:17 1-1 0-0 0-0 1 1 2
Singleton 3:17 0-0 0-0 1-1 0 0 0
Pct.: FG .655, FT .786.
3-point goals: 9-17, .529 (Terry 4-4, Thomas 4-8, Kidd 1-3, Beaubois 0-2).
Team Rebounds: 6.
Team Turnover: 12 (13 PTS).
Blocks: 8 (Gooden 4, Nowitzki 2, Beaubois, Thomas).
Turnovers: 12 (Kidd 3, Thomas 3, Beaubois 2, Gooden 2, Barea, Carroll).
Steals: 14 (Barea 3, Thomas 3, Carroll 2, Nowitzki 2, Beaubois, Gooden, Kidd, Marion).
Technical Fouls: Thomas, 0:02.7 third.
HOUSTON Min FG
M-A FT
M-A Reb
O-T A PF PTS
Totals 240:00 38-83 18-29 13-33 22 19 99
Battier 27:43 3-5 0-1 1-2 1 0 8
Scola 27:54 6-13 3-4 2-7 3 3 15
Hayes 14:56 1-8 1-3 3-7 2 3 3
Brooks 26:30 3-7 3-5 0-0 5 5 9
Ariza 36:44 8-15 2-3 0-1 3 1 20
Lowry 31:41 1-6 1-4 3-3 7 4 4
Budinger 20:17 0-7 0-0 1-4 1 2 0
Landry 28:31 9-11 6-6 1-6 0 1 24
Andersen 16:20 4-6 2-2 2-3 0 0 10
Taylor 5:41 1-2 0-0 0-0 0 0 2
Cook 3:43 2-3 0-1 0-0 0 0 4
Pct.: FG .458, FT .621.
3-point goals: 5-20, .250 (Battier 2-4, Ariza 2-6, Lowry 1-3, Brooks 0-1, Cook 0-1, Taylor 0-1, Budinger 0-4).
Team Rebounds: 13.
Team Turnover: 17 (29 PTS).
Blocks: 4 (Ariza 2, Battier, Hayes).
Turnovers: 17 (Lowry 6, Brooks 3, Ariza 2, Battier 2, Cook 2, Scola, Taylor).
Steals: 4 (Ariza 2, Lowry, Scola).
Technical Fouls: None.
A: 18,157 (18,043). T: 2:07.
Officials: Steve Javie, Eric Dalen, Pat Fraher.
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