I just wanted to let everyone know that Wednesday was my final contribution to Mavs Moneyball. It has been a wonderful season being on board with the blog, but an opportunity has come along that I truly can not pass up. For those who are interested, I will be joining the Mavs.com writing staff with Earl K. Sneed and company.

I want to thank Lisa for her ability to take a chance on me and letting me run with the ball for as long as I could. She has a lot on her plate and has to deal as the monkey in the middle (between the writers and the community) and she's done a lot of great work in the time I have been on board. Thank you, Lisa. To everyone who called me a robot, I still continue to state my case that I am not a robot. The blog is in good hands with Lisa and staff that still remains on board as things moves forward. Thank you to everyone who read my articles, I hope you enjoyed them all. Take care.

In the final match-up in the season series between the two teams, the Denver Nuggets defeated the Dallas Mavericks 104-96 in Dallas in what could be a possible first-round playoff preview. After the Mavericks fell behind as much as 16 points in the third quarter, they were able to get the game to 94-all. Dallas had to play the game without Tyson Chandler as he sat out due to a back issue. Jason Kidd was given the night off to rest his body. The Mavericks were led by Shawn Marion's 21 points and Dirk Nowitzki added 20 points in the losing effort. The Mavericks also got a surprising performance from Corey Brewer with his 13 points and Brendan Haywood pulled down a season-high 19 rebounds. The Mavericks have now lost four straight games and nine straight games against teams currently in the top eight in the Western Conference.

JR Smith scored seven points in a 9-0 Nuggets run as Denver pulled away for the victory. Smith ended up with a game-high 23 points and added five boards and three assists for the Nuggets. Denver has now won nine of the last 12 regular season meetings with Dallas. The Mavericks have gone 22-7 in the last 29 match-ups with the Nuggets at home, but Denver has taken five of the last seven at American Airlines Center.

The Mavericks now have four games remaining the regular season and they have no idea who they will be facing in the first round of the playoffs. Dallas is only a game ahead of the Oklahoma City Thunder and the Thunder have the tie-breaker over the Mavericks. If the Mavericks do retain the three seed, they could face either New Orleans, Portland or Memphis. Despite having players sit out, the team is fully confident that the team will have their rhythm in place. The goal continues to be daily improvement.

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Wednesday night marks the beginning of the end as the Dallas Mavericks (53-24) have five games remaining before the regular season ends. They will start the final stretch by starting a three-game homestand against the new-look Denver Nuggets (47-30). Denver will be on the second night of a back-to-back as they hosted the Oklahoma City Thunder on Tuesday night and suffered a 101-94 loss in a physical match-up. The Nuggets have a record of 8-9 on the second night of a back-to-back. Their road record on the second night of a back-to-back is 6-8.

This will be the final match-up in the season series between the two teams. The two teams split the home-and-home series on Nov. 3 and Nov. 6, with the road team winning each time. Arron Afflalo beat the buzzer to defeat the Mavericks, 121-120, in Denver on Feb. 10. The Nuggets closed the game on an 11-1 run en route to the win. The Mavericks’ bench outscored the Nuggets’ bench, 72-12, in the loss. The 72 bench points marked the most Dallas has scored in a game since April 13, 1995 (70 at Seattle). It was also the most points recorded by any team’s bench in the NBA this season (Denver scored 70 points off the bench vs. Phoenix on November 28, 2010). Denver has won eight of the last 11 regular season meetings with Dallas. The Mavericks have gone 22-6 in the last 28 match-ups with the Nuggets at home, but Denver has taken four of the last six at American Airlines Center.

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Episode 25 of MOR is here! 25 means our car insurance rates are going down, yes!! The highly anticipated west coast road trip has come to an end, and we're here to pick up the pieces. We probably could have done a four hour show and still had plenty to talk about - instead, here's two hours crammed as we head to the "Doctor's Office" looking for a diagnosis of what is ailing the Mavs, and what it means going into the last week of the regular season. Be sure to catch the end of the show to get details on our upcoming playoff preview remote broadcast on 4/14. You can listen to the episode here, download and enjoy!

Intro - Man-Sized Road Recap (LAC, LAL, GSW, POR)
29:55 - Mavs Symptoms, Pt. 1: Energy
46:16 - Mavs Symptoms, Pt. 2: Guard Play
1:04:00 - Mavs Symptoms, Pt. 3: Rotation
1:21:08 - BG's Tales from the Road
1:40:38 - Game Previews (DEN, LAC, PHX, @HOU, NOH)

Our next episode is set for Thursday, April 14 (6-8 pm CST). It is our HUGE end-of-season special. Join us for our end-of-season wrap-up and preview for the Mavs' 2011 playoff run. We'll be broadcasting live from Twisted Root Burger in Dallas, with Mavs broadcasters Mark Followill and Jeff "Skin" Wade jumping on for the full show in a round table format. Twisted Root Burger is located in Dallas on SMU Blvd. just across the street from The Barley House.

You'll be able to listen live via Ustream. For future reference, you can catch the live stream here on MMB or you can also catch it live at http://www.highway377.com/mor and you'll be able to download the podcast, as always, if you're unable to listen live at the link listened above or on iTunes. And if you're not streaming live with us, you're missing out on some extra fun.

Also, you can always email us your thoughts and questions at MavericksOutsiderReport@gmail.com

Sunday marked the end of the Dallas Mavericks' toughest stretch of the season as they played 20 of 30 games on the road. They are 21-9 since Feb. 1, third best record in the league during that span. That is an impressive record, but the Mavericks had a tough pill to swallow as they suffered a 104-96 loss to the Portland Trail Blazers in Portland. Shawn Marion led the Mavericks in the losing effort with 19 points and Rodrigue Beaubois added 18 points. Portland had six players in double figures and were led by Gerald Wallace with 19 points and eight rebounds.

The Blazers have now won five of the last eight meetings against the Mavericks. The teams split the season series, 2-2, and appear to be on a collision course to the meet in the first round of the playoffs. The road woes continued for Dallas as they hold an all-time record of just 18-46 in Portland.

The Mavericks have been held to under 100 points in five of their last six games, after they hit the century mark in 24 of their previous 28 contests. The Mavericks are 40-4 when they reach the century mark this season (compared to 13-20 when they score under 100 points). With 10 days left in the regular season, the Mavericks will have to regroup and re-establish their winning ways so they can get back on track before the playoffs begin.

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The dust has settled from the 110-82 victory for the Los Angeles Lakers over the Dallas Mavericks. That may be the case, but that doesn't mean that the story is over. Mavericks owner Mark Cuban went on the Ben and Skin Show which airs weekdays from 9am-Noon on 103.3FM ESPN Radio. "We couldn’t hit an open shot," Cuban said. "You have those games during the course of the season and we picked a bad time to do it. The unfortunate thing was we were probably due for one of those nasty games where you get blown out and it happens to every team. It probably couldn’t have happened at a worse time but that’s just the way it goes. It’s just one game and you move on." 

Perspective is a crazy thing in the NBA. Just a few weeks ago, the Lakers looked lost in the water as they were having devastating losses to teams like the Cleveland Cavaliers and the San Antonio Spurs looked invincible. It's just all part of the ebb and flow of the season and Thursday night's loss to the Lakers is just another bump in the road for the Mavericks.

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In a game that was supposed to reveal answers, the Dallas Mavericks left with more questions as they suffered their worst loss of the season with a 110-82 defeat to the Los Angeles Lakers. Kobe Bryant led the Lakers with 28 points and Andrew Bynum added 18 points and 13 rebounds in the victory over the Mavericks. Dirk Nowitzki led the Mavericks with 27 points and 13 rebounds. Nowitzki had to carry the team as the supporting cast could not keep up with the two-time defending champions. The Mavs’ losing streak against Western Conference playoff teams was extended to seven games with the loss against the Lakers. The first six losses in that streak were by a total of 16 points. That goes to show that the 28-point loss was a total beatdown. The Lakers now have a game-and-a-half lead on the Mavericks and own the tie-break between the two teams. With seven games left, the Mavericks' chances of taking the No. 2 seed in the Western Conference have evaporated.

The game saw a tussle begin in the early moments of the fourth quarter when Jason Terry shoved Steve Blake from behind as the Lakers guard tried to go up for a layup. Blake responded by getting up off the floor and getting in Terry's face. As the two guards exchanged words, Lakers forward Matt Barnes got in the middle of it. Mavs assistant coach Terry Stotts tried to calm Barnes down and Barnes responded by pushing him into the first row of the crowd. Terry, Barnes, Blake and Brendan Haywood were ejected from the game. Los Angeles' Shannon Brown was later ejected in a separate altercation.

With the loss, the chase for the No. 2 seed is likely done. If they make it to the second round, they will be trying to steal the home-court advantage instead of trying to protect it. An emotionally deflating loss like this can leave a team at a fork in the road. With two games remaining on their six-game road trip, the Mavericks will have to decide whether to pick themselves up or stay down for the count.

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After dropping five of the previous eight games, the Dallas Mavericks have found their way into a five-game winning streak. They put that on the line as they will take on the two-time defending champion Los Angeles Lakers on Thursday night in Los Angeles. For the Mavericks, it will be the second night of a back-to-back. For the Lakers, it will be their first game in three days as the schedule gave them a nice break. "It's going to be a great test for it and we're looking forward to it," said coach Rick Carlisle. "The Lakers have been the best team in the league since the break, based on their record. But this was a good win for us." The Lakers have won seven straight and 15 of 16 since the All-Star break so the record speaks for itself.

The two teams will square off at the Staples Center for the rubber match between the two teams in 2010-11. It will be the first time the two clubs face each other in Los Angeles since Jan. 3, 2010 (Lakers recorded a 131-96 win). The Lakers have won nine of the last 12 meetings with the Mavericks. The Mavericks have struggled mightily on the road against the Lakers. Dallas has lost 34 of the last 38 match-ups in Los Angeles against the Lakers. The Mavericks snapped a 26-game losing streak in Los Angeles with a 110-93 victory on Dec. 12, 2003. Dallas is only a half-game back of the Los Angeles Lakers for No. 2 seed in the Western Conference.

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The Dallas Mavericks continued to flex their muscles on their six-game road trip with a 106-100 victory over the Los Angeles Clippers on Wednesday night. The Mavericks are now on a five-game winning streak and are currently 3-0 at the halfway point of their longest road trip of the season. Dirk Nowitzki led the Mavericks with 24 points, but it was J.J. Barea who was the star of the night as he scored 22 points off the bench. Barea's performance proved to be the turning point in the victory over the Clippers.

Blake Griffin had a man-sized game against the Mavericks as he finished the game with 25 points and 17 rebounds. In the previous two match-ups, the Mavericks had done a good job of containing the Clippers’ franchise big man. The rookie out of the University of Oklahoma had averaged 19.0 points, 35.5 percent shooting and 10.0 rebounds in the two contests against the Mavericks this season. He is averaging 22.5 points, 50.6 percent from the field and 12.1 boards against the rest of the league.

The Mavericks have won nine straight against the Clippers, including 15 of the last 16 meetings. With the 99-83 win at Los Angeles on Wednesday, Dallas recorded its fifth consecutive road victory over the Clippers. Dallas has now defeated the Clippers seven out of the last eight times in Los Angeles. Dallas now holds a record of 13-1 against the Pacific Division this season. The Mavericks’ one loss against the Pacific Division came against the Lakers on Mar. 12. The win also improved the Mavs' road record to 27-10, best in the NBA.

Dallas is gearing up for the biggest challenge of their six-game road trip, a battle against the Los Angeles Lakers. The game will be the final match-up between the two teams in the regular season. The Mavericks are not winning in a pretty nature but they continue to find ways to get victories. Thursday night should be a great test to determine whether the Mavericks are headed in the right direction or not.

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The Dallas Mavericks, an NBA-best 26-10 on the road, are on a four-game winning streak and are 2-0 on their season-high six-game trip and they are in LA-LA land to take on the city’s two NBA franchises back-to-back, starting with the Los Angeles Clippers. Dallas (52-21) is only one game back of the Los Angeles Lakers for No. 2 seed in the Western Conference and will play the two-time defending champions Thursday. The Mavericks have lost five of six against the Lakers at Staples, but the Staples Center woes appear to stay away from the team when they play the Clippers there.  The Mavericks have won four straight over the Clippers (29-45) in Los Angeles by an average of 17.5 points. Their last road meeting against the Clippers was the third game of the season (Oct. 31) and the Mavericks won the game 99-83. Dallas has now defeated the Clippers six out of the last seven times in Los Angeles.

The Mavericks have been able to flex their muscles against the Pacific Division over the course of the season. Dallas enters the match-up with the Clippers with a record of 12-1 against the Pacific Division this season. The Mavericks’ one loss against the Pacific Division came against the Lakers on Mar. 12.

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Sorry for the tardiness, Los Angeles can be a beast. Episode 24of MOR is here! The man-sized road trip is upon us! Time to talk ball again.. and how are these Mavs going to overcome the self-sabotage they've engaged in lately? Bryan is shocked to hear that there's a pending CBA expiration, and Rhylan gets into the story about the guy who couldn't find his books.. at all. In addition to a slew of deep Mavs analysis, of course. You can listen to the episode here, download and enjoy!

Starting on Saturday night, the Mavericks will embark on their longest road trip of the season. Out of the six games (Utah, Phoenix, both Los Angeles Teams, Golden State and Portland), four of the game will pit the Mavericks against teams who will either be in the playoffs or are still in the hunt for the remaining five Western Conference playoff spots. As we noted, it has been a while since the Mavs have been on this kind of road trip. While they are on the road, Dallas will have a chance to reverse the negative trend that has come along the way. The Mavericks are win-less in their last six games versus teams in the Western Conference that would make the playoffs if they started today. "We haven't beaten any of the top teams in a while," said Dirk Nowitzki. "We've got to pick it up."

The Mavericks will have a chance to hit the ground running as they match up against the Utah Jazz on Saturday night. The Mavericks will look to sweep a four-game season series with the Jazz for the first time in franchise history with a win at Utah. The Mavericks haven’t swept a season series with the Jazz since 2004-05, when they went 3-0 against Utah in the regular season. Dallas snapped a five-game losing streak in Salt Lake City with a 93-81 win on Dec. 3. The Jazz are now 55-16 all-time against the Mavericks in Utah.

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The Dallas Mavericks hit the practice court one more time before going out on the road for their six-game West Coast trip. The Mavericks PR staff noted that this trip is the longest road trip for the team since Mar. 2007 when they went on the road to face the Detroit Pistons, New York Knicks, Cleveland Cavaliers, Boston Celtics, Atlanta Hawks and the New Orleans/Oklahoma City Hornets. The Mavericks finished that trip 6-0 and their average margin of victory was 10.7 points. Dallas is looking to find their groove after going a pedestrian 5-5 over their last 10 games.

The latest game saw the Mavericks having to scratch and claw to outlast the Minnesota Timberwolves without their All-Star forward Kevin Love. It was apparent within the first few minutes of the game that the Mavericks did not have their antennas set for the game against the Wolves. Whether they were looking at the upcoming road trip or in a comfort zone after the three days between games, the Mavericks were not focused and it almost led to them receiving a painful loss. "Some nights you're going to struggle," coach Rick Carlisle said. "In those situations, you have to take your medicine, own it if you're not playing well and work to get better." With that specific game, the recent stretch of games and the recent playoff history, fans have become doubtful when they try to assess the chances the Mavericks have in the playoffs.

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With the 104-96 victory over the Minnesota Timberwolves on Friday, the Dallas Mavericks reached the 50-win plateau for the 11th straight season. "That's very impressive for a franchise to be able to do that,'' said Jason Kidd. "That just shows that the owner and management have something special here.'' The Mavericks are just the third franchise (since the NBA went to an 82-game schedule in 1967) to record at least 11 consecutive seasons with at least 50 wins (also the San Antonio Spurs from 1999-present, the Los Angeles Lakers from 1979-1991).

The thing that separates those clubs from the Mavs is the fact that those franchises have multiple championships to speak of during their successful regular seasons. Dallas remembers the painful memory in 2006 where they lost a 2-0 lead to the Miami Heat. To date, the appearance in the 2005-06 NBA Finals has been the only Finals appearance for the Mavericks.

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Dirk Nowitzki and Jason Terry combined to score 19 of the Mavericks' 28-fourth quarter points and that was the difference in the 104-96 victory over the Minnesota Timberwolves. The dynamic duo triggered the 11-2 run over the final 2:38 en route to the win. With the victory over Minnesota, Dallas secured their 11th straight season with at least 50 wins. The Mavericks are just the third franchise (since the NBA went to an 82-game schedule in 1967) to record at least 11 consecutive seasons with 50-plus wins (also the Spurs from 1999-present, the Lakers from 1979-1991).

Dallas swept the season series with Minnesota. The Mavericks have won 18 of the last 19 match-ups with the Timberwolves, including 21 of the last 23. Their one loss in the last 19 meetings with Minnesota came at home last season on Feb. 5, 2010 (lost 117-108). Dallas has won 10 of the last 11 match-ups at home against Minnesota.

It was not a pretty way to earn their 11x50. The Mavericks had to gut out a win versus a team that only has 17 wins to speak of for the regular season and they were without their best player, Kevin Love. There are some positives to take away in the win, but they do have to go back to the drawing board and work things out. The team will remain positive and look to build their confidence as they go on their longest road trip of the regular season. It should be a galvanizing experience for the boys in blue.

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With 12 games left in the regular season, the Dallas Mavericks are looking to get better on the defensive end of the floor, maintain their offensive potency and record as many victories as they can. The bigger priority might be ensuring their overall health does not deteriorate as the playoffs arrive. Not counting the Jan. 1 season-ending knee injury to small forward Caron Butler in Milwaukee and Dominique Jones' foot surgery in early Feb., the Mavericks have not had their full complement of 12 players since March 1 in Philadelphia when Dallas won 101-93. In the 10 games since, they are as average as you can be with a record of 5-5. In the process, the team lost their grip on the Western Conference's No. 2 seed to the Los Angeles Lakers.

The latest rash of injuries the Mavericks have had to deal consisted of the stiff back for Brendan Haywood, stiff neck for Peja Stojakovic and a sprained right wrist for Shawn Marion. Brendan Haywood has returned and looks no worse for wear while it has been a day-to-day situation for the small forwards. According to Coach Rick Carlisle, the Mavericks are hopeful they will have their entire 12-man roster ready to go against the Minnesota Timbelwolves on Thursday.

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Wednesday, the Dallas Mavericks participated in day two of their extensive practice week as they prepared for the game against the  Minnesota Timberwolves on Thursday, and their longest road trip of the season that starts Saturday in Utah. Rick Carlisle said that the road trip will take them through the "wild blue yonder." First, they will have to play the Timberwolves and they will have to prepare for a new-look team as Kevin Love will not travel with the team on their two-game road trip. Love has been dealing a groin injury and it was too much to deal with so he decided to stay in Minnesota and continue receiving treatment. Carlisle did not know Love's status as practice ended, but he knew that the Wolves would still be ready if their All-Star was unable to play. "They’ll have another high energy player running around." According to the Timberlwolves, they will start Anthony Randolph in Love's place, but they will also have players like Anthony Tolliver and Michael Beasley who can play the small forward position. "They’ll be hard to guard because they’re smaller," Carlisle said when assessing Minnesota if they did not have Love in the lineup.

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One is the loneliest number, but it also marks the number of rebounds Dirk Nowitzki had in the game against the Phoenix Suns prior to the All-Star break on Feb. 17. In the eyes of coach Rick Carlisle, Having the advantage in the rebounding category is considered one of the major keys to success for the Dallas Mavericks. For the season, Nowitzki is currently averaging 6.8 rebounds, his lowest average since his first full season in the NBA (1999-00). His rookie year was the 1998-99 season, but it was shortened to only 47 games due to the lockout.

Based on those numbers, concern was starting to grow where people wondered if Nowitzki's right knee was not fully recovered after sitting out nine games due to a sprained knee (late December/early January). The nine games that he missed marked the longest stretch of games he's missed in his 12-year NBA career. When you add the 12 years, consistent trips to the playoffs and summer commitments to the German National Team, concern about Nowitzki losing tread on the tires could be a legitimate concern. Questions arose whether or not Nowitzki's overall "lift" was completely gone or was he just biding his time until it was time to crank it up?

The 10-time All-Star has started to crank up the intensity in the rebounding department, which has helped the Mavericks' overall rebounding production increase along the way. Prior to the All-Star break, Dallas was out-rebounded by their opponents by an average margin of .3 (41.5 to 41.2). Post All-Star Break, Dallas has out-rebounded their opponents by an average margin of +2.9 (41.6 to 38.7). That is a significant change and Nowitzki has played a big role in their positive results.

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Episode 23 of MOR is here! We tackle the up and downs of the week in Mavs-land. Mark Followill, minus the belt, joins the crew for a man-sized segment, breaking down the game against the San Antonio Spurs, what's in store when you look ahead to the bottom level of the Western Conference Playoff bracket and the critical six-game West road trip that will certainly grow hair on the team's chest. Also, our resident Lawyer joins the show to help break down the Bill Spooner defamation suit situation. The Mystery Segment returns and delivers some quality material. You can listen to the episode here, download and enjoy!

Intro - Game Recaps (POR, @GS, GS)

16:34 - SAS Recap, Playoff Matchups and Road Trip Outlook w/ Mark Followill

45:38 - Grab Bag of Mavs' Ailments

1:05:05 - NBA Nuggets (BG's Audio Bag, Bill Spooner & the TJBC Legal Counsel)

1:24:45 - Fab Five/UNLV Docs (aka, Return of the Mystery Segment)

1:43:30 - Game Previews (MIN, @UTA, @PHX)

Our next episode is set for Monday, March 28 (6-8 pm CST). You'll be able to listen live via Ustream. For future reference, the address to listen live is http://www.highway377.com/mor and you'll be able to download the podcast, as always, if you're unable to listen live at the link listened above or on iTunes. And if you're not streaming live with us, you're missing out on some extra fun.

Also, you can always email us your thoughts and questions at MavericksOutsiderReport@gmail.com

The Mavericks temporarily got out of their funk with a 101-73 victory over the Golden State Warriors on Sunday. Tyson Chandler was a major factor with his seven point, 18 rebound performance in the game. One of the biggest factors in the game was the fact that he ended the game with only two fouls. If you look at the previous three games against bigger opponents (Los Angeles Lakers, Portland Trail Blazers and San Antonio Spurs), Chandler struggled in those games because fouls eventually ruined any momentum he could have built. He averaged 6.3 points, 5.3 rebounds and 5.0 fouls in those three games. Those numbers definitely do not resemble his season averages of 10.2 points, 9.4 rebounds and 3.2 fouls.

Chandler is a player driven off of emotion and energy. Those two characteristics make him the special player that he is. Unfortunately, there is bad that comes with the good and the emotions can get the best of him. He's had situations where he has been frustrated with foul calls and they have led to whistles directed at him in bunches. When Chandler is not on the court, the dynamics for the Mavericks radically change.

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Dirk Nowitzki led the Dallas Mavericks with 20 points and Peja Stojakovic returned after dealing with a stiff neck by scoring 17 points in the 101-73 victory over the Golden State Warriors. The win clinched a playoff berth for the Mavericks. It marks the 11th straight trip to the playoffs and they are one win away from collecting their 11th straight season with at least 50 wins.

Golden State and Dallas met for the second time in five days as they play at American Airlines Center on Sunday. Dallas has now won six straight against the Warriors, including 11 of the last 14 matchups. Dallas has gone 7-1 in the last eight matchups with Golden State at home. With the win, the Mavericks are now 38-4 when they reach the century mark this season (compared to 11-17 when they score under 100 points).

Dallas used Saturday as a day to reassess things and look at themselves in the mirror. Tyson Chandler said it was a day to decide if they were going to call it a summer or buckle down and get things back in order. Sunday night's performance against the Warriors was a good start. They will use this week a practice week similar to what the San Antonio Spurs had last week as they had three days off before their game against Dallas on Mar. 18. The Mavericks are hopeful it can lead to similar results as they have 12 games left to get things in order before the real season begins.

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When you are in the midst of a rough patch, simple adjustments can be made in an attempt to get things back in gear. The Dallas Mavericks are looking to do that with a simple tweak on Sunday as they prepare to face the Golden State Warriors. The Mavericks took Saturday as a day to review film and see what went wrong in the game against the San Antonio Spurs. On a typical game-day such as Sunday, the Mavericks would have a morning shootaround around 10 or 11 am. That is not the case on Sunday as they will take the court at 4:15, just over two hours before their 6:30 tip off against the Golden State Warriors.

Teams go through rough patches like the Mavericks are currently in, just look at the Boston Celtics at the moment. Dallas is struggling with starting games/quarters, their small forwards can't stay healthy and brain farts are running rampant. If the Mavericks want to reach their ultimate goal, they will need to find a way to get out of their rut.

Turnovers were a major issue for the Mavericks earlier in the season and it has reappeared as of late. They have turned the ball over 47 times in their three recent losses to the Los Angeles Lakers (13 turnovers), Portland Trail Blazers (15) and to the San Antonio Spurs (19). In those three games, the Mavericks turned it over 20 times more than their opponents. The opposition averaged 22.7 points off of turnovers during that span.

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The "Big Three" for the San Antonio Spurs were the difference in the 97-91 victory over the Dallas Mavericks. Tony Parker led the Spurs with 33 points; Manu Ginobili added 25 points and Tim Duncan had 22 points. With the loss, the Mavericks have lost five of their last eight games and have lost six straight games to Western Conference teams currently in the top eight seeds. Their last victory over a top eight team was against the Los Angeles Lakers on Jan. 19.

Dirk Nowitzki led the Mavericks with 23 points. Nowitzki was the only starter for the Mavericks to score in double figures. Off the bench, Jason Terry scored 19 points with Shawn Marion and JJ Barea added 13 points apiece. Every time that the Mavericks made a run to get back within striking distance, the Spurs answered back and stomped the momentum the Mavericks were building.

San Antonio took the season series 3-1 with a win in Dallas on Friday. The Mavericks won the season series 3-1 in 2009-10. The Mavericks fell to 3-2 in their last five match-ups with the Spurs at American Airlines Center.

The Mavericks are in the midst of a tough stretch of games and the results are not what they were hoping for. It does not help that they are losing against teams they could potentially see in the playoffs. Dallas needs to use the last 13 games of the season to get things in order or things could be rough when they arrive in the first round.

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It's always special when the Dallas Mavericks and the San Antonio Spurs face off and Friday night should not be any different. It will be the final match-up between the in-state rivals in the regular season. Dallas has won five of the last eight regular season meetings with San Antonio, but the Spurs have won two of the last three. San Antonio is looking to take the season series 3-1 with a win at Dallas on Friday. The Mavericks won the season series 3-1 in 2009-10. The Mavericks are 3-1 in their last four match-ups with the Spurs at American Airlines Center. Dirk Nowitzki shot an impressive 12-of-14 (85.7%) from the floor en route to a team-high 26 points in the win at San Antonio on 11/26/10. That victory for the Mavericks ended the Spurs’ 12-game winning streak. The Spurs are looking to clinch the season series but it should be noted that Dirk Nowitzki did not play in the last two meetings with the Spurs due to a sprained right knee.

"It's a great rivalry, there's history there," Rick Carlisle said. "Right now, they're the best team in basketball, so this is the kind of game you get excited about." Carlisle is speaking the truth as the Spurs still have the NBA's best record at 54-13. San Antonio will not be intimidated by coming in to the American Airlines Center as they have the league's second best road record at 23-10. The Mavericks posses the league's best road record at 24-10.

Coach Rick Carlisle said that he expects Brendan Haywood (stiff back) to give it a go against the Spurs, but Peja Stojakovic (stiff neck) will be inactive for his sixth straight game.

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