Mavs Shoot Down Rockets

Vernon Maxwell shot 2-for-7 in his Mavericks debut, but Mad Max still managed to contribute to a Dallas victory.

Michael Finley scored 27 points and Dirk Nowitzki had 26 points and 13 rebounds as the Mavericks beat the Houston Rockets for only the third time in the last 19 meetings, 100-95 Saturday night.

Maxwell helped out on the defensive end in his 22 minutes, giving the Mavericks a lift with defensive stopper Greg Buckner on the bench with a nagging ankle sprain.

In the fourth quarter, Dallas' defense limited Houston to 6-for-20 shooting and caused five Rocket turnovers.

"I needed defenders," Mavericks coach Don Nelson said. "I didn't expect going into this game he would play more than 10 minutes. ... Defensively I needed him in there, and he came through. He's going to be a real good addition to our club."

Maxwell hadn't played in a game since he was released by Philadelphia on Dec. 22. Maxwell was so winded in his first practice with the Mavericks that he was sick to his stomach, but he said he felt a lot better in his first game action with Dallas.

Maxwell, who was with the Rockets for back-to-back championships in 1995-95, had the Reunion Arena crowd roaring when he assisted on consecutive baskets in the second quarter with crisp passes.

"I get more excited about my passes than anything else," said Maxwell. "I felt pretty good for my first game back."

Hakeem Olajuwon had a season-high 27 points and 13 rebounds, and Steve Francis added 21 points and 10 assists for the Rockets, who had won 10 of 12 games.

Poor outside shooting down the stretch and four missed free throws in nine fourth quarter attempts proved the Rockets' undoing.

"We beat ourselves in the fourth quarter," said Francis. "That killed us."

Finley's two free throws with 11.6 seconds left gave Dallas a 98-93 lead, icing Dallas' third straight victory and sixth in eight games.

Juwan Howard added 19 points and Steve Nash had 17 for Dallas.

The Rockets won the two previous meetings with the Mavericks this season by a total of 22 points and are still in playoff contention. The Mavericks are trying to hold on to the sixth spot in the Western Conference for what would be their first playoff berth in 10 seasons.

"I feel Houston is going to be a playoff team," said Nelson. "They're going to beat out somebody and I just hope it isn't us. That's why this was such a big game."

The Rockets were without guard Cuttino Mobley, missing his second straight game with a strained right ankle. Mobley is the Rockets second-leading scorer at 19.2 points per game.

Maxwell made one of two free throws to give the Mavericks the lead for good at 90-89 with 2:37 left. Olajuwon missed two foul shots on the other end, then Nowitzki converted a layup with 2:04 remaining for a 92-89 advantage.

Francis' layup with 1:06 left reduced Dallas' lead to 94-93, but Finley hit two free throws with 52.9 seconds left to expand the advantage to 96-93.

Francis dribbled the ball out of bounds with 41.4 seconds remaining, and he missed a 3-pointer with 12 seconds left that that would have tied the game.

Finley's two free throws with 11.6 seconds left closed out the Rockets.

Dallas rallied from a six-point deficit after three quarters, tying the game at 83 on Nash's layup with 6:03 to play.

Olajuwon's three-point play with 5:23 left gave the Rockets an 86-83 lead, but Nowitzki hit consecutive 3-pointers to put Dallas in front, 89-86.

The Mavericks took a 48-47 halftime lead behind Howard's 13 points.

Notes