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We take a look at the games that impact the West playoff picture each morning for the rest of the regular season.

Mavs' spot in the standings: The Mavs and Nuggets are both 11 ½ games behind the top-seeded Spurs, but Denver is in control of its destiny when it comes to securing the sixth seed. The Nuggets (35-28) have one fewer loss than the Mavs (36-29) and are a couple of percentage points ahead in the standings. The Mavs own the tiebreaker over the Nuggets, whose three remaining games are at home against the Magic and on the road against the Thunder and Timberwolves.

SATURDAY'S GAMES
Nuggets 118, Suns 107: Ty Lawson had 29 points and 10 assists as Denver clinched a playoff spot.

Bulls 93, Mavs 83: The Mavs put up a decent fight against the East’s first-place team despite Jason Kidd and Jason Terry sitting out to rest.

Rockets 99, Warriors 96: Houston snapped a six-game losing streak and kept its slim playoff hopes alive.

Grizzlies 93, Trail Blazers 89: The Grizzlies almost let a 12-point lead slip away in the last four minutes, but Memphis held on for its 14th win in 18 games to pull within a half-game of the Clippers for the fourth seed.

Jazz 117, Magic 107 (OT): Devin Harris scored 21 points, including a dagger 3-pointer in overtime, as the Jazz seized control of the fight for the West’s final playoff seed.

TODAY’S GAMES
Thunder at Lakers
Rockets at Heat
Cavaliers at Spurs
Magic at Nuggets
Hornets at Clippers

If the playoffs started today: Mavs vs. Thunder

UPDATED: 9 a.m., Friday.

The Dallas Mavericks clinched a playoff berth Thursday with New Orleans' win over Houston. Now attention turns strictly to seeding and matchups.

With the Mavs (35-28) -- back in action tonight for their home finale against the Golden State Warriors -- and Denver Nuggets (34-28) in a virtual dead heat in the Western Conference standings and both teams now two games ahead of the trailing Utah Jazz (33-30) and Phoenix Suns (33-30) in the loss column, the jockeying between the two is coming down to the sixth and seventh seeds.

Which would the Mavs prefer? As the seventh seed the Mavs know their travel will be light to play the No. 2 seed. They'd start the playoffs either north of the Red River at the Oklahoma City Thunder or on the River Walk at the San Antonio Spurs. The sixth seed will face the No. 3 seed and likely head to Los Angeles to face Kobe Bryant's Lakers. Chris Paul's Clippers lost Thursday at Phoenix, a hit to their chances of moving up and Memphis remains a long shot.

"It doesn’t matter at all," Jason Terry said of which seed the Mavs finish. "We've just got to get in. One more game and we solidify one of those three spots and and we’ll see what happens. It’s going to be a helluva playoffs. If I'm a fan I'm sitting here waiting. I can’t wait for the next week and a half to be up."

Jet can just about forget about the eighth seed. The Mavs hold the tiebreaker on the Nuggets, Jazz and Suns.

So which team, the Mavs or Nuggets, hold the upper hand to finish in sixth? Well, it depends just as much on how those two teams approach their final games after playoff berths are locked up as it does on their opponents' approach.

For instance, the Mavs could face a Chicago Bulls team Saturday night intent on finishing with the best record in the NBA. The Atlanta Hawks on Thursday could still be dueling with the Boston Celtics and/or Orlando Magic for the No. 4 seed and homecourt in the first round.

Here's the breakdown of schedules for the Mavs and Nuggets:

Mavs (winning percentage of opponents: .573)
Fri: vs. Golden State (22-39)
Sat: at Chicago (47-15)
April 26: at Atlanta (37-25)

Nuggets (winning percentage of opponents:.554)
Sat: at Phoenix (32-30)
Sun: vs. Orlando (36-26)
Wed: at Oklahoma City (45-17)
April 26: at Minnesota (25-38)

We take a look at the games that impact the West playoff picture each morning for the rest of the regular season.

Mavs' spot in the standings: The Mavs are back in the sixth seed, a half game ahead of the Nuggets and in possession of the tiebreaker. Dallas is two games ahead of the Jazz and two and a half games ahead of the Suns and Rockets.

WEDNESDAY'S GAMES
Mavs 117, Rockets 110: Dirk Nowitzki scored 21 of his 35 points in the fourth quarter of the Mavs’ critical comeback win.

Clippers 104, Nuggets 98: Chris Paul had 21 points and eight assists as the Clippers won their fifth straight to pull within a half game of the Lakers for the third seed.

Grizzlies 103, Hornets 91: Rudy Gay scored 26 points as the Grizzlies clinched their second consecutive playoff berth.

Lakers 99, Warriors 87: Andrew Bynum had 31 points and Pau Gasol had a 22-11-11 triple-double.

Spurs 127, Kings 102: The first-place Spurs rolled to another rout while Tim Duncan rested.

Jazz 112, Trail Blazers 91: Ex-Maverick Devin Harris hit a career-high six 3-pointers during a 27-point performance to help keep Utah’s playoff hopes alive.

Thunder 109, Suns 97: Sixth Man of the Year frontrunner James Harden scored a career-high 40 points for Oklahoma City.

TODAY’S GAMES
Rockets at Hornets
Clippers at Suns

If the playoffs started today: Mavs vs. Lakers

We take a look at the games that impact the West playoff picture each morning for the rest of the regular season.

Mavs' spot in the standings: The Mavs slipped to seventh place, a half game behind the Nuggets. The Rockets and Suns are a game and a half behind the Mavs, and Utah is two games behind Dallas.

MONDAY'S GAMES

Jazz 123, Mavs 121 (3 OT): Dallas missed a chance to throw a knockout punch to the Jazz’s playoff hopes, running up the Mavs core players’ minutes in the process.

Spurs 120, Warriors 99: San Antonio cruised to a win over Golden State’s summer league squad to take over the West's top spot.

Clippers 92, Thunder 77: The Thunder fell out of first place after managing to score only 25 points in the second half.

Nuggets 105, Rockets 102: Arron Afflalo scored 26 points to lead the Nuggets to their fourth win in five games.

Suns 125, Trail Blazers 107: The Suns shot 60 percent and had six players score in double figures to move into the eighth seed.

TODAY’S GAMES
Grizzlies at Timberwolves
Spurs at Lakers

If the playoffs started today: Mavs vs. Thunder

We take a look at the games that impact the West playoff picture each morning for the rest of the regular season.

Mavs' spot in the standings: Denver's blowout win against Golden State puts them in a dead heat with the Mavs for the seventh spot -- of course, Dallas holds the tiebreaker by virtue of winning the season series. Both teams are now a full game back of the red-hot Rockets, who won their fourth in a row at Portland.

MONDAY'S GAMES
Lakers 93, Hornets 91: The Kobe-less Lakers bounced back, barely, from getting drilled in Phoenix. Pau Gasol had 25 points and nine rebounds and Ramon Sessions had 17 points and six assists. His 3-pointer put the Lakers up by six with 26 seconds left.

Thunder 109, Bucks 89: Oklahoma City moved back into the top spot in the West on a rare night in which five players scored in double figures. Thabo Sefolosha (14) and Serge Ibaka (13) joined regulars Russell Westbrook (26), Kevin Durant (19) and James Harden (16).

Jazz 91, Spurs 84: Gregg Popovich gave Tim Duncan, Manu Ginobili and Tony Parker the night off with an eye toward the upcoming back-to-back against the Lakers and Grizzlies (Wednesday and Thursday). The Jazz are limping with Earl Watson (knee) out indefinitely and C.J. Miles (calf) injured.

Grizzlies 94, Clippers 85: Memphis is making a hard push for a first-round playoff series on its home floor. The Grizz moved one-half game behind the Clips for the fourth seed. L.A. plays seven of hits final 10 games on the road. The Grizz have six of 10 at home.

Nuggets 123, Warriors 84: Denver got a boost from the return of Dino Gallinari, who busted his thumb the last time Dallas came through town on March 19. He had 15 points, six assists and five boards in 30 minutes.

Suns 114, Timberwolves 90: Steve Nash kept the heat on his former team to beat the Kings tonight. The Suns notched their 30th victory and can tie Dallas in the loss column if the Mavs fail to take care of their business.

Rockets 94, Blazers 89: Houston is happy to have Kyle Lowry back in the lineup. He came off the bench and provided 13 points (5-of-6 FGs), four rebounds, three assists and two steals in 23 minutes.

TODAY’S GAMES
Kings at Mavs

If the playoffs started today: Mavs vs. Spurs

DALLAS -- The Dallas Mavericks have nine games left in the regular season. The next one is Tuesday at home against the Sacramento Kings.

"Huge game for us," guard Jason Terry said. "There’s no bigger game for us this season."

Entering Monday's games, five teams -- Houston, Dallas, Denver, Phoenix and Utah -- are separated by 2 1/2 games and in contention for the final three playoffs spots in the Western Conference. The Mavs hold the tiebreaker against all of them, but they'll still have to take care of their own business with six of nine games on the road during this final kick.

There are multiple times during the final 18 days of the regular season when the five contenders play one another. The standings are bound to change from game to game and final seeding might come down to April 26, the final night of this 66-game regular season.

Here's a look at the remaining schedules for the five teams:

We’ll take a look at the games that impact the West playoff picture each morning for the rest of the regular season.

Mavs' spot in the standings: They’re sitting in seventh, a half-game behind the Rockets and a half-game ahead of the Nuggets. Dallas is 1 ½ games ahead of the Suns and two games ahead of the Jazz.

SUNDAY'S GAMES

Spurs 114, Jazz 104: Tony Parker and Manu Ginobili combined for 51 points in the first-place Spurs’ 11th straight win. Utah guards Earl Watson (knee) and C.J. Miles (calf) left the game due to injuries.

Thunder 91, Raptors 75: Oklahoma City went on a 24-0 run in the second half to turn a close game into a comfortable win.

Rockets 104, Kings 87: Courtney Lee scored 25 points to lead the Rockets in point guard Kyle Lowry’s return after missing 15 games due to a bacterial infection.

TODAY’S GAMES
Lakers at Hornets
Thunder at Bucks
Clippers at Grizzlies
Warriors at Nuggets
Suns at Timberwolves
Spurs at Jazz
Rockets at Trail Blazers

If the playoffs started today: Mavs vs. Thunder

Jason Terry, whose voice was coming back after a battle with hoarseness, had a told-you-so moment Saturday night in Houston.

Jet had just scored 14 of his 24 points in the fourth quarter and overtime, hitting the game-winning shot on a pull-up jumper in the final minute. It was the kind of clutch performance Terry prides himself in – and precisely why he was so irate about riding pine with the game on the line a couple of times earlier this month.

“I told everyone that I have to be on the floor in those situations,” Terry said as he dressed in the Toyota Center visitors locker room. “If I’m not, I’m going to be very disappointed, because I feel that if I’m out there and our team is close, we’ll have a very good chance to win.”

Did Terry remind coach Rick Carlisle of that?

“He knows,” Terry said. “We talk every day since we had our little episode.”

Their “little episode” is a reference to Terry being benched while Rodrigue Beaubois missed a pair of potential game-tying shots March 8 in Phoenix – and the fireworks that went off in the locker room after that loss.

Just to be clear, Carlisle had good reason to bench Terry against the Suns. Carlisle has never elaborated on why he made the “coach’s decision” – that’s all he would say about it – but it was obvious that he was disgusted by Terry’s poor effort when the ball wasn’t in his hands. Carlisle called a timeout after Terry failed to box out Phoenix’s Shannon Brown, and Terry didn’t step foot on the court again after Brown’s ridiculously easy putback dunk.

Carlisle wasn’t the only one upset at Terry. Dirk Nowitzki has also acknowledged having a heated exchange with his longest-tenured teammate that night.

However, Carlisle and Nowitzki readily acknowledge that the Mavs need Terry on the court during closing time to be a legitimate contender.

Terry provided further evidence by carrying the Mavs in crunch time Saturday night in Houston, when Nowitzki didn’t have a bucket for the final 11:10 of regulation and all of overtime with the Rockets opting to hug him on pick-and-rolls. The case had been closed long before Terry scored 11 points in the final 7:11 of the back-and-forth battle between teams scrapping for playoff positioning.

“That’s his quarter. That’s his reputation,” Carlisle said. “He takes pride in it. Our guys look for him, and he’s a different breed of cat. There aren’t a lot of guys that want that responsibility. We’re fortunate that we have two of them with him and Dirk – and [Jason] Kidd, if you want to throw a third guy in.”

Added Nowitzki: “That’s why he’s one of the best clutch players in this league.”

Terry, who talks as freely as he shoots, couldn’t have said it better himself.

How it happened: The Dallas Mavericks’ defense, the one aspect of their team they’ve been able to consistently count on this season, betrayed them.

Again. And Again. And again.

And that’s how the Mavs blew an 11-point second-half lead and lost to yet another sub-.500 team.

Phoenix 96, Dallas 94.

The Mavs led 74-63 with about four minutes left in the third quarter. Aided by the momentum of their 15-2 run to end the third quarter, the Suns played their best basketball to start the fourth quarter.

Rick Carlisle called a timeout with 2:55 left in the quarter, when the Suns pulled within six. He used a 20-second timeout 54 seconds later, when the Suns pulled within two.

The Mavs had used the offense of Vince Carter and -- surprise, surprise -- Lamar Odom to grab the lead. But it actually worked against the Mavs because the offense never really flowed through Dirk Nowitzki.

Late in the third quarter, Carter had taken 15 shots and Nowitzki had six. Even though, he was playing well, he shouldn’t have 2 1/2 times more shots than the Mavs’ best player.

The Mavs let Phoenix seize control of the game in the fourth quarter, when Sebastian Telfair hit a 3-pointer that pushed the lead to 88-80, and after Shawn Marion missed a runner, Shannon Brown had a follow dunk that extended the lead to 90-80.

We shouldn’t be surprised the Mavs cratered in the fourth quarter. After all, the Mavs have exactly one victory this season when trailing after three quarters.

What it means: The Mavs have now lost the first game of their only back-to-back-to-back on this compressed 66-game NBA schedule this season. The Mavs are on the final leg of their nine-game, 12-day odyssey and are guaranteed a losing record.

Bold play of the game: With 14.3 seconds left in the game, and the Mavs needing a bucket to tie the score, Jason Terry was on the bench wearing a T-shirt over his jersey. Rodrigue Beaubois took his spot. He missed a runner and a jumper at the top of the key as time expired.

Stat of the game: The Mavs hadn’t had a defensive three-second technical in 17 games. Well, it’s time to begin a new streak after getting four of them in the first three quarters. How wild is that?

The Mavericks travel to Phoenix in what could be the last time Steve Nash and Dirk Nowitzki play against one another.

Follow along with our experts as they tweet and chat throughout the game.

PHOENIX -- The Dallas Mavericks have shown us time and time again this season, they aren’t good enough to take any opponent for granted.

Recent embarrassing losses to New Jersey and New Orleans, each among the NBA’s worst teams, have reinforced that notion.

Well, it’s time for the Mavs to take care of business against some inferior opponents if they’re ever going to find some consistency in a weird season that’s already seen plenty of highs and lows.

The Mavs conclude their nine-game, 12-day odyssey with three consecutive games against opponents who are below .500.

The Mavs get Phoenix on Thursday night, followed by Sacramento on Friday and Golden State on Saturday.

That’s right, three games in three days.

It’s the only time this season the Mavs will have back-to-back-to-back games.

“I can’t look too far ahead,” coach Rick Carlisle said. “These three games are the ones I’m really fixated on, and tonight is the most important because it’s the first one. Looking at things in broad strokes is not as important as sticking to our process and concentrating on rebounding, turnovers and defense. That’s how we have to proceed.”

They’ll have to win tonight without Brendan Haywood, who’s still hobbled with a sprained ankle he suffered in the first minute of the Mavs’ loss to Oklahoma City.

But if the Mavs can sweep the next three games, they’ll finish this journey 5-4 record, a terrific ending, considering its dubious start.

“Every moment that we can embrace and find a way to win is important for us. The standings are so congested, every win is critical for us,” Carlisle said. “The nature of the season is that it’s going to hard for anyone to get a lot of separation because everyone is in the same boat with difficult travel and a lot of games.”

Is it possible that this final meeting of the season between the Mavericks and Phoenix Suns will also be the last time that Steve Nash and Dirk Nowitzki play against one another?

No, Nash has no plans of retiring when his contract expires after the season. But might the Mavs have ideas to bring Nash back to Dallas? That's what ESPN.com' Marc Stein reported a few weeks ago; that is if Dallas strikes out first with Deron Williams and Dwight Howard.

All that's to come. Tonight, sit back and enjoy late-night Nash and Jason Kidd, former teammates themselves who combine for 76 years, 34 NBA seasons and 21,379 assists worth of Hall-of-Fame-worthy play.

Records: Mavs (23-17); Suns (17-21)

When: 9:30 p.m.

Where: US Airways Center

TV: TNT

Radio: ESPN Dallas 103.3 FM; 1270 AM (Spanish)

What to watch: Keep an eye on Suns big man Marcin Gortat as he makes his 50th consecutive start for the Suns. The former Magic backup once coveted by the Mavs has been excellent against Dallas in a Suns uniform, averaging 19.3 points and 12.3 rebounds, better than his 16.2 and 10.6 season averages.

Key matchup: Dirk Nowitzki vs. Channing Frye
Nowitzki has not had his typically strong performances against the Suns this season. All three games were played during the cruel month of January and he missed the middle meeting when he sat out four games during his personal training camp. The last game against Phoenix on Jan. 30 was his second game back and Nowitzki managed just 10 points on 4-of-10 shooting. He had 20 on Jan. 4 on 7-of-17 shooting. The Suns have not seen this version of Dirk since last season.

Injuries: Mavs – C Brendan Haywood (sprained left ankle) is doubtful; G Delonte West (fractured right ring finger) is out; C/PF Brandan Wright (concussion) is out. Suns – None.

Up next: Mavs at Sacramento Kings, 9 p.m., Friday

Three games in three nights and Jason Kidd is ready to roll. In all three.

"That’s what the plan is," Kidd said. "Why not? We’ve got to try to win all three of these games."

Why not? Because ever since the schedule came out, everyone's speculated which of the three games Kidd would sit out for his own survival. Because in two weeks, he'll turn 39 and by the time he gets through Thursday night's game at Phoenix, Friday's at Sacramento and takes the floor in his hometown of Oakland for Saturday's tip against the Warriors, he'll be playing his fifth game in six nights and ninth in 12. He'll practically be ready to keel over.

"I feel good," Kidd insisted after Tuesday's win over the New York Knicks in which he dropped a season-high 15 points with six assists and four rebounds in 32 minutes, just his fourth 30-minute endeavor in the last 13 games.

A clean sweep against three of the Western Conference's bottom four teams would certainly turn momentum on this current 2-4 stretch in the nine-in-12. Overall, the Mavs have lost six of nine. But, Tuesday's home win over the Knicks served as a huge bounce-back from Monday's tough loss at Oklahoma City.

The Mavs, playing without centers Brendan Haywood (sprained left ankle), who may or may not play Thursday, and Brandan Wright (concussion), who did not make the trip, took the action to the Knicks. One night after getting to the free throw line just 10 times, and complaining about it, the Mavs got there 30 times Tuesday.

They built a big lead, played solid defense and rallied to withstand a New York flurry.

"In the midst of what we're going through right now in terms of frequency of games," coach Rick Carlisle said, "this is as good a win as we've had in a long time."

And it was as good a game as Kidd has played in a long time, as if he was inspired by playing against 23-year-old sensation Jeremy Lin, who grew up in Palo Alto following Kidd's career. Averaging career lows by far, 5.4 points and 5.6 assists, Kidd hit double-digits for just the third time all season and it was just the fourth time he made at least three 3-pointers and the sixth time he made at least half of his 3-point attempts in a game.

And now comes the grinder of three games in a row, something Kidd hasn't done since the lockout-shortened 1999 season with Phoenix, which he vaguely remembers.

"We played all three Texas teams," he said.

Almost. The first of two trifectas started at home against Denver and then went to Houston and San Antonio. How'd he hold up then as a seven-year vet? How do two triple-doubles sound in the first and third games to go 2-1? And check out the three-game averages: 18.7 points, 11.3 assists and 10.6 rebounds. Here's the most remarkable number: Kidd averaged 40.7 minutes.

Those games came in the opening couple weeks of the 50-game season.

The second triple-header came along in late March, starting the day after he turned 26. They were Kidd's 27th, 28th and 29th games of the season. This set seemingly took more of a toll as his stat line went from 23-10-7 to 13-8-8 to 11-6-6 in an average of 40.0 minutes a game.

Tonight's game will be Kidd's 31st of the season and his 15th since returning from a strained right calf, his second injury of this hyper-drive, 66-game schedule. He won't play nearly as minutes as back in the day. But, what about one more triple-double for old-time's sake?

"The body feels good," said Kidd, halfway through his 18th season. "So we’ll see what happens with these three."

The Dallas Mavericks begin Week 2 of the stretch from you-know-where. Last week will seem like a leisurely weekend compared to this one with five games in six nights -- including the lone back-to-back-to-back of the season to cap this thing. It all starts tonight at Western Conference-leading Oklahoma City, which is a tidy 15-1 at home.

When this nine-games-in-12 nights stretch, an unprecedented stint in franchise history, started last Tuesday, Dirk Nowitzki was asked how he can possibly look at that schedule and not have a bad attitude toward it.

"I have that attitude," he said. "It is brutal."

At least they'll visit the Oklahoma City Thunder about as rested as they're going to be having had a day off after Saturday's 102-96 victory. Although Nowitzki and the starters had to return to prevent a catastrophic embarrassment as a 23-point lead slipped away in the fourth quarter, Nowitzki and Jason Kidd still logged fewer than 30 minutes.

This is the last of four meetings this season. OKC holds a 2-1 advantage, but the sense from the Mavs' side is that they were darn close to taking all three. Kevin Durant won the first game in OKC on a buzzer-beating 3, and the Thunder took control late in Dallas against a depleted Mavs' roster.

Entering this game, OKC is 7 1/2 games ahead of the Mavs (22-16) in West standings. So what's Dallas' plan as it crosses the Red River for the last time in the regular season?

"We're going to hope they miss," Mavs coach Rick Carlisle said. "They're killing people."

There's something else to consider this week. While the Mavs will have one day of rest over the next six, four of their five opponents will have had at least one night off.

Here's a look at the week ahead:

Tonight: at Oklahoma City Thunder (29-8), 7 p.m.
TV/Radio: FSSW, NBA TV/ESPN Dallas 103.3 FM; 1270 AM (Spanish)
What to watch: The Thunder try to become the second team in the league and the first in the West to notch 30 wins. They'll also be glad to be back home for the first time since Feb. 23, when they beat the Lakers by 15 heading into the All-Star break. OKC went 2-1 on the road trip, dropping Saturday's game at Atlanta while pulling out a pair of close ones at Philadelphia and Orlando by a combined seven points.

Tuesday: vs. New York Knicks (18-19), 7:30 p.m.
TV/Radio: FSSW, NBA TV/ESPN Dallas 103.3 FM; 1270 AM (Spanish)
What to watch:Tyson Chandler will be dreaming about his championship ring Monday in Dallas while the Mavs are playing at the Thunder and then making the short flight back home. Chandler is the final member of the title team to pick up his ring. He did a number on his former teammates a couple weeks ago with 14 points, 10 rebounds and three blocked shots in a Knicks win during full-on Linsanity. This time around the Mavs will get to see old friend Carmelo Anthony as well. The Knicks were on their way to moving over .500, but a late Paul Pierce 3-pointer tied Sunday afternoon's game and Boston won it in overtime. So, that's two teams in a row the Mavs will face that are coming off losses.

Thursday: at Phoenix Suns (16-20), 9:30 p.m.
TV/Radio: TNT/ESPN Dallas 103.3 FM; 1270 AM (Spanish)
What to watch: The Suns start the week coming off two impressive home wins against the Timberwolves and Clippers to even their home record at 9-9. After losing four in a row, Steve Nash's Suns have won four of five. And they really are Nash's Suns. The 38-year-old All-Star could demand a trade to a contender, but that's not his style and it looks like he'll ride out the final year of his contract in the desert. From there who knows? Well, we do know, courtesy of ESPN.com's Marc Stein that the Mavs will look to reunite Nash and Nowitzki if their top plans of signing Deron Williams or Dwight Howard or both doesn't pan out. This one should be tough on the Suns with a date at OKC the night before.

Friday: at Sacramento Kings (12-24), 9 p.m.
TV/Radio: FSSW, NBA TV/ESPN Dallas 103.3 FM; 1270 AM (Spanish)
What to watch: The last time these two teams met in Dallas, the Kings set a record for futility by a Mavs opponent by scoring 23 points in the first half and 60 for the game. Think they'll remember that? The Kings' 12 victories are more than only New Orleans in the West, and we all know what the Hornets did to the Mavs last week. While the Mavs will surely be feeling fatigue by this point, the Kings will have the luxury of a night off after playing at home.

Saturday: at Golden State Warriors (14-20), 9:30 p.m.
TV/Radio: FSSW, NBA TV/ESPN Dallas 103.3 FM; 1270 AM (Spanish)
What to watch: It's a good thing these aren't the Warriors of old, oh, like last season. Mark Jackson's team is more defense-focused and offense has dropped off to 97.6 points a game, which in this strange season is still good for seventh in the league. As for that defensive focus, well, Golden State is just one of five teams allowing 100 or more points a game (100.3). So, basically, Jackson has stifled the Warriors' high-scoring offense while not really making up for it at the other end. Still, the Mavs will be so ready to get home at this point that this is bound to be a struggle from the start. And you can't overlook the Warriors' true advantage in this one: Monta Ellis and company will have had two days off.

How it happened: The Dallas Mavericks turned in a Spurs-like 3-point barrage in the first half and in particular the second quarter when they hit 7-of-8. Dallas made 10 from beyond the arc in the first half -- and a season-high 14 for the game -- to help build an 18-point halftime lead with 66 points, a season-high for any half. The 122 was also a season-best.

Vince Carter's return has been a significant addition considering Dirk Nowitzki's scoring continues to be on the low side. Consider in the first half that Carter's hot hand poured in 15 points, Delonte West had 13 -- and combined they were 6-of-7 from long range. Jason Terry had nine points and Shawn Marion had eight. Nowitzki had four.

The struggling Suns played without their engine, point guard Steve Nash, and they managed to stay close up to about the 5:39 mark of the second quarter, trailing 46-41. Dallas closed out the half on a 20-7 run with a flurry of 3s and a buzzer-beater by West to put it away.

Here's the most fascinating stat of tonight's offensive onslaught that involved Nowitzki as a rare outsider: the Mavs had three 20-point scorers for the first time this season. West put up a season-high 25 on 5-of-6 shooting from downtown, Carter matched Sunday's season high with 21 points and 5-of-7 shooting from deep, and Shawn Marion also had 20, all coming from inside the arc.

Nowitzki? He finished with 10 points, matching his output in Sunday's return. He was 4-of-10 and 0-of-3 from beyond the arc.

But, what a positive sign for the Mavs' formerly sluggish offense to find the kind of scoring to blow up the scoreboard with Nowitzki still seeking that elusive rhythm.

And what about Rodrigue Beaubois in his second start replacing Jason Kidd at point guard? He had a nice night with eight points and dished out seven assists for the third consecutive game. Kidd was averaging 4.1 points and 5.1 assists in 16 games. Again, Beaubois took care of the basketball. He had just one turnover in 24 minutes. His final points came in the final minute on a sweet alley-oop jam courtesy of Dominique Jones.

The Mavs finished the game shooting a sizzling 55.2 percent overall and 51.9 from beyond the arc.

What it means: The Mavs (14-8) closed the month of January with a 13-5 record. The 18 games marked a franchise record for most games in one month. Since being 3-5 on Jan. 5, Dallas has won 11 of 14 games. Dallas will start February with an intriguing home date Wednesday against the Oklahoma City Thunder.

Play of the game: West's buzzer-beater off a baseline inbounds pass was nice to end the first half, but you know it had to be Carter with the night he had, and this one was pure insanity. With 4:44 to go in the game and Dallas comfortably ahead 110-88, Carter, working on the left side just outside the lane, backed down Michael Redd, made a move into the middle of the lane, got bumped by Redd and then put up a running behind-the-back shot with the right hand from about eight feet out that floated up and came down straight through the hoop. Unfortunately for Carter, it would only count for smiles as the refs called the foul on the floor.

Stat of the day: The Mavs improved to 6-2 on the season on the second night of back-to-backs. A ninth set comes up Friday and Saturday starting at home against the improved Indiana Pacers and finishing Saturday at the Cleveland Cavaliers.