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Thursday, Jan. 25 8:00pm ET
Mavs atone for embarrassing November loss

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DALLAS (AP) -- The Dallas Mavericks clearly remembered what happened the last time the Vancouver Grizzlies came to town.

Steve Nash
Mavs guard Steve Nash, right, runs into the Grizzlies' Mike Bibby on his way to the basket.

Steve Nash scored 21 points and Michael Finley added 20 as the Mavericks paid back the Grizzlies with a 120-83 victory on Thursday night.

In their previous visit to Reunion Arena on Nov. 8, the Grizzlies routed the Mavericks 101-74, Dallas' most lopsided defeat of the season.

"The only explanation is that we were more prepared tonight," acting Mavericks coach Donn Nelson said. "That loss definitely stung and we hadn't forgotten that. We're a deeper team, more mature and were executing better."

Dirk Nowitzki had 19 points and 10 rebounds and Hubert Davis added 19 points off the bench for the Mavericks, who won for the fourth time in their last five games.

Dallas posted its season-high point total and its largest margin of victory for the season. Vancouver lost its sixth in a row.

The Mavericks rolled to a 71-43 halftime lead behind 15 points and eight rebounds from Nowitzki and 13 from Davis. Dallas had its biggest half of the season, surpassing a 69-point second half against Houston on Dec. 30.

Dallas broke open the game by outscoring the Grizzlies 39-20 in the second quarter behind Davis' 13 points and Nowitzki's 12. The Mavericks shot 69.6 percent in the second quarter (16-for-23) and Davis hit all three 3-point attempts.

The Mavericks wanted get off to a better start than they did on Tuesday night when the were outscored by the Philadelphia 76ers in the first quarter, 32-20, en route to a 114-98 defeat. Nash was especially anxious to play well against Vancouver, his native city.

"We were determined after the last loss (to Philadelphia) to get off to a good start tonight," Nash said. "We were able to push the ball, move it around, get some easy baskets. I think this win gets our confidence back."

The Mavericks opened with a 32-23 first quarter, hitting 14 of their first 21 field goal attempts.

Shareef Abdur-Rahim, Mahmoud Abdul-Rauf and Mike Bibby all scored 13 points each to pace the Grizzlies, who fell to 3-15 on the road.

Dallas went on to lead by as many as 40 points in the fourth quarter, allowing Nelson to hold out his starters.

"That's exactly what the doctor ordered," said Nelson, running the team in place of his father, Don, who is recovering from prostate cancer surgery. "We needed to rest some guys and we had a chance to do that tonight."

Vancouver coach Sidney Lowe credited the Mavericks for opening the game with intensity. In the next breath, he ripped his team for its lax defense.

"Dallas is a good team, but we need to be able to compete," said Lowe. "We're going to see many nights like this in the second half of the season when teams are trying to get in position for the playoffs.a"

Abdur-Rahim has been prominently mentioned in trade rumors, and he finished Thursday night 7.3 points under his season average.

"Anything I would say would be detrimental to the team," Abdur-Rahim said.

Finley drew the primary defensive assignment against Abdur-Rahim.

"We just tried to eliminate his catches and make it tough for him to get the ball," Finley said. "Any time you play one of the best guys in the NBA, you have to pick your game up."

Game notes
Prior to the game, the Mavericks activated guard Greg Buckner off the injured list. He scored three points in 13 minutes. To make room for him, the team placed rookie forward Donnell Harvey on the injured list because of tendinitis in his right elbow. Buckner missed 24 games after undergoing surgery to remove a bone spur from his right foot. ... The Grizzlies are 4-18 all-time against the Mavericks. ... The 71 points allowed in the first half were the most given up by the Grizzlies in any half this season. ...Dallas forward Gary Trent finished with a season-high 10 points.
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RECAPS
Dallas 120
Vancouver 83

Portland 92
Indiana 82

Minnesota 109
Orlando 100

Utah 98
Denver 96

San Antonio 97
Sacramento 91

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