It was a playoff-like atmosphere at the American Airlines Center on Wednesday, so it was fitting the veterans came up big for the Mavericks.
Dallas used a big offensive game by J.J. Barea and a big defensive play by Dirk Nowitzki to secure a critical 88-86 win over the Rockets.
MORE: 23 most-hated players in league history | Sam Hinkie made the NBA better by destroying 76ers
It was a huge night for the Mavs, who maintain a two-game lead over the ninth-place Rockets in the Western Conference playoff standings. It was an equally big loss for the Rockets, who are now a full game behind the Jazz for the eighth and final playoff spot.
Barea finished with 27 points when scoring hard to come by.
“I’m in great rhythm attacking the basket,” Barea told ESPN after the game — his fourth straight with 21 or more points.
Nowitzki, however, did not have a good offensive game, scoring just seven points on 2-for-8 shooting. But his strip of James Harden as Harden drove to the paint for what would have been a late game-tying layup set up a pair of Devin Harris free throws, which gave the Mavs a three-point lead with under six seconds remaining.
The Mavs have now won five games in a row as they look to sneak into the playoffs.
"The locker room is great right now. Everybody is focused. We’re rolling right now," Barea said. "We don’t care who we play right now, we just gotta get wins."
So far, so good.
Stud of the night
Isaiah Thomas continues to put the ball in the basket in Boston. The Celtics guard scored 32 points and dished out eight assists in a 104-97 win over the Pelicans.
Dud of the night
Bojan Bogdanovic had a night to forget, as did his team. The Nets came up on the short end of a 121-103 decision to the Wizards, while Bogdanovic hit just two of his 12 attempts from the field to finish with four points.
Tweet of the night
Paul George put up 29 points on the LeBron-less Cavaliers as the Indiana Pacers won, 123-109.
Paul George with the PRETTY finish for the AND 1! @ESPNNBA #NBARapidReplay #CLEatIND https://t.co/9Bg9lCsAvB
— NBA (@NBA) April 7, 2016
Looking ahead
Spurs (65-12) at Warriors (69-9), 10:30 p.m. ET: If this wasn’t a huge game a week ago, it surely is now. The Warriors have lost two of their last three games, and will need to win each of their remaining four games to break the 1995-96 Bulls' record of 72 wins in a season. This will be the first of two games against the Spurs over that span.