Mavericks Pelicans Preview

Mandatory Credit: Jerome Miron-USA TODAY Sports

DALLAS MAVERICKS (35-23) vs NEW ORLEANS PELICANS- Feb. 26 at 8:00 p.m. ET on ESPN at AAC 

The Dallas Mavericks return home after going 3-0 during their recent East-coast road trip and will face the New Orleans Pelicans. Game starts at 8:00 p.m. ET and can be seen on ESPN and Fox Sports Southwest.

Dallas will look to sweep the season series and earn its third win streak of at least four games this year.

Fear The Brow: Former No. 1 pick Anthony Davis is showing why he represented New Orleans in the All-Star game. The uni-brow big man has recorded a double-double in his last four games, and seven overall in the month. In two games versus Dallas, Davis is averaging 24.5 points, 13.5 rebounds and 2.5 blocks while shooting 52.8 percent. Davis didn’t play in the first match up, but had 28 and 14 in the previous contest, and 21 points, 13 boards and five blocks versus Dallas on Jan. 10.

Let’s Go For 40 Again: In their last match up on Jan. 11, Dirk Nowitzki scored a season-high 40 points, including 20 in the 3rd quarter. Nowitzki shot 10-of-20 and hit five treys while going 15-of-16 from the charity stripe. Four Pelicans scored in double figures, but Monta Ellis added 26 while Jose Calderon had 17 and the Mavericks hung on for a 110-107 victory. Both teams combined for more points in the third than the entire first half. It was Dirk’s first 40-point game since April 16, 2012.

Add It To The Resume: Dallas is coming off a 110-108 win in New York over the Knicks on Feb. 24. Carmelo Anthony went for 44 points and tied the game at 108 with a 3-pointer with 10 seconds left. Melo then guarded Nowitzki during the last-second shot, but Dirk drained the fadeaway from the free-throw line as it hit the back iron and bounced in. The Mavs moved to a season-best 12 games above .500.

Season Series: Nowitzki is averaging 28.3 points in three games this season versus the Pelicans, 2nd-highest average against any team (Houston). The Mavs defeated the Pelicans on Jan. 10, by 17 points, despite 27 from Eric Gordon. Dallas won the first match up 97-94.

Heating Up: The Mavs have won nine of their last 11, only trailing to Houston for best mark in the league. Dallas is averaging 106.3 points in that span. Nowitzki is averaging nearly 21 points on 54.4 percent shooting in 10 games this month. Because of their recent surge, the Mavs sit in the 7th spot in the West and can very well move to the 6th seed with a win and Golden State loss.