In the crowded Western Conference race, Dallas still has a chance at hosting a first-round playoff series, but could also find itself out of postseason play for the first time since 1999-2000.
Hosting a Golden State Warriors team that has dropped six straight on the road could be exactly what the Mavericks need Wednesday night to pad their playoff position.Dallas (42-28) currently holds the eighth and final playoff spot in the West, but is only 2 1/2 games out of the No. 4 seed and home-court advantage in the first round. That could be key for the Mavericks, who have won a season-best eight in a row at home.
Their most recent longer winning streak at home was Dec. 29, 2007-Feb. 29, 2008, when they posted 12 straight victories.
With the surging Phoenix Suns trailing Dallas by just three games for the final playoff spot, the Mavericks need to take care of business against the Warriors (25-46), who have lost their last three visits to the American Airlines Center by an average margin of 23.6 points.
That includes a 117-93 Mavericks win Jan. 28, when Jason Terry scored 22 points off the bench to lead six Dallas players in double figures.
Golden State won the last meeting between these clubs, though, 119-110 at home March 13 behind 29 points and 11 rebounds from Monta Ellis. Bay Area native Jason Kidd had 21 points, 11 assists and 10 boards for Dallas in that defeat - the third triple-double in his last eight games versus Golden State.
The Mavericks have struggled on the road of late, but Dirk Nowitzki's game-winning jumper with 1.1 seconds remaining Friday gave them a 94-92 victory at Indiana, snapped a three-game skid away from American Airlines Center and prevented a fourth loss in five games overall.
"It was a huge win for us, a tremendous win," Terry told the team's official Web site. "We couldn't afford to lose another game on this road trip."
The Warriors, meanwhile, fell to 0-2 on their four-game road trip after Tuesday's 107-106 loss to San Antonio - their sixth consecutive defeat away from home.
Ellis led the Warriors with 27 points, but the star guard missed a jumper with 5.9 seconds left, then came up short on a running 3-pointer at the buzzer.
"I thought Monta could have gotten to the rim, certainly in five seconds get to the rim," Golden State coach Don Nelson said. "But anyways, that was what he chose to do. They made a big shot and we didn't. That's really the bottom line."
Ellis has scored 21 points or more in six of eight games since missing seven due to a family issue.
Stephen Jackson had his string of double-doubles snapped at two with Tuesday's 18-point, eight-rebound effort. Jackson had 31 points, 10 assists and seven rebounds in Golden State's win over Dallas earlier this month.
