Dallas shoots for its 10th consecutive home win over the
Toronto Raptors when the two teams hookup at American Airlines Center on
Saturday night.
The Mavericks are coming off a tough overtime loss in the Big Easy on
Wednesday when Chris Paul poured in a game-high 39 points, dished out seven
assists and grabbed five rebounds, as the New Orleans Hornets edged Dallas,
114-107.
Jason Terry paced the Mavs with 35 points off the bench, and Erick Dampier
tallied 16 points and 14 boards for Dallas, which had a three-game
winning streak snapped. Dirk Nowitzki had 12 points and five rebounds before
fouling out.
"The opportunities were there. We didn't play a particularly pretty game, but
we really battled, and did what we had to do to put us in a position to win,"
Mavericks head coach Rick Carlisle said. "But, NBA basketball is 48 minutes;
on consecutive nights, strange things can happen if you don't make plays. Dirk
fouling out was a very difficult break for us,"
The Raptors, meanwhile, won their second straight game in New Orleans on
Friday.
Chris Bosh, who went to Lincoln High School in Dallas and has never won an NBA
game in his hometown, poured in a game-high 27 points in that one as Toronto
handed the Hornets a 107-90 drubbing
Jose Calderon notched 16 points and eight assists, while Hedo Turkoglu chipped
in 16 points as well for Toronto, which had split its first four games of the
season. Andrea Bargnani added 14 points and nine rebounds, and Jarrett Jack
and Marco Belinelli each donated nine points off the bench for the victors.
Toronto made a staggering 14-of-29 from behind the arc in the win.
"We just made shots," Calderon said. "Some days you make them and other days
the ball just doesn't want to go in.
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