Mavericks at Lakers Final Score 107-95: Dirk & Wright Lead Mavs To Another Win At Staples

Credit: Jerome Miron-USA TODAY Sports

DALLAS MAVERICKS at LOS ANGELES LAKERS Recap- April 4

Dirk Nowitzki continued to climb the career-scoring list, scoring 27 points to pass Dominique Wilkins for 11th all time, and the Dallas Mavericks got their second-straight win in Los Angeles, defeating the Lakers 107-95 on April 4.

The Mavericks were playing against the Lakers when the Grizzlies and Suns both won, pulling all three teams into a tie for 7th, but after the 12-point win, Dallas regained sole possession of the 7th seed.

The Western Conference standings didn’t change with all three teams winning, and the Golden State Warriors up by 30+ at home against the Kings.

Nowitzki was 11-of-14 from the floor and added nine boards and five dimes. He was one rebound shy of his third-straight double-double.

Brandan Wright and Samuel Dalembert combined for 37 points on 16-of-19 shooting and 19 rebounds.

Dallas outrebounded the Lakers 52-38 (15-10 on the offensive glass).

Jodie Meeks, who scored a team-high 25 points for LA, knocked down a three to give the Lakers a 78-77 lead with 47 seconds left in the third, but the Mavs countered with a 14-0 run that ran into the fourth, and never looked back.

The Mavericks sweep the season series with the Lakers, the first time they’ve done that in franchise history. They also finish the season at a perfect 6-0 on the second night of road back-to-backs.

Box Score

Milestone Watch: As aforementioned, Nowitzki passed Wilkins for 11th in all-time scoring with his first point at the 8:47 mark of the third, coming at the free-throw line. Nowitzki went into halftime tied with the Human-Highlight Reel with 17 points. Nowitzki entered the game needing 60 points to pass the Big-O, Oscar Robertson for 10th place, and now needs 33 points to do so. He’ll have a chance on April 6 in Sacramento. He’s averaging 23.7 points in three games against the Kings this season, which included a 34-point game. If Nowitzki can’t achieve the feat then, his next chance will be April 8 in Utah against the Jazz. On the season, Nowitzki has also passed Jerry West, Reggie Miller, Kevin Garnett, Alex English and John Havlicek in career scoring.

10. Robertson- 26,710

11. DIRK- 26,678

12. Wilkins- 26,668

The Wright & Sammy D Show: Wright scored a season-high 23 points on a perfect 10-of-10 from the field. His previous high was 19 points, coming in his season debut. Wright scored 11 points in the fourth. He’s the first Maverick to go perfect from the field, with a minimum of 10 attempts, since 1985-86 (Per mavstats). Wright’s 10 field goals without a miss is the second most this season, behind Serge Ibaka‘s 12-of-12 on Dec. 12 (Per mavstats). Dalembert contributed 14 points and 14 rebounds, his fifth double-double of the season. In the third quarter alone, Dalembert recorded 10 points and six rebounds. The Mavericks are now 14-3 this season when Dalembert scores in double digits and 9-5 when he grabs at least 10 boards. They’re also 4-1 when he grabs a double-double. In the last nine games, Dalembert is averaging 9.1 points and 9.5 rebounds.

Vote for the Player of the Game

Is it 2014 or 2004: In the Mavs last six games, Nowitzki is averaging 26.3 points and 9.5 rebounds a game, well over his season averages of 21.6 and 6.3. In that span, he has three double-doubles, half his season total. He’s also shooting 56 percent from the field and 45 percent from distance, again better than his season average of 49.2 and 39.6 percent. April has also been good to him. In three games, Nowitzki is averaging 28.6 points and 10.3 boards on 64.1 percent shooting (64.7 percent from three).

Decide Your Own Fate: At 46-31, Dallas has five games left in the regular season, three on the road and two back home. The Mavericks will finish their four-game road trip in Sacramento and Utah before returning to the American Airlines Center against the West-leading Spurs and Suns. They’ll finish the season on April 16 in Memphis against the Grizzlies. The season tiebreaker will be determined against the Suns while the Mavs already own the tiebreaker against Memphis.