• Preview
• Recap
• Bleachers

NBA's top two teams face off

Mar 14, 2007 - 1:50 PM Phoenix (49-14) at Dallas (52-10) 9:00 pm EDT

DALLAS (Ticker) -- Coming off a rare loss, the Dallas Mavericks will face their biggest threat in the Western Conference.

In a matchup of the top two teams in the NBA, the Mavericks will host the Phoenix Suns on Wednesday.

After starting the campaign with four straight losses, the Mavericks won 52 of their next 57 games.

Dallas had its 17-game winning streak snapped on Monday, falling to Golden State, 117-100, as superstar Dirk Nowitzki was held to just 13 points. It was the Mavericks' first loss since January 25 at Chicago.

Phoenix also has put together a 17-game winning streak this season. Since the All-Star break, the Suns have gone 10-1 to pull within 3 1/2 games of the Mavericks in the race for the West's top seed.

But it will be tough for Phoenix to catch Dallas, which has become the first team to notch three winning streaks of at least 12 games in the same season and has reeled off 23 consecutive home victories.

The Mavericks have won both meetings with the Suns this season, including a dramatic 101-99 home victory on December 28 when Nowitzki nailed a game-winning jumper in the final seconds.

That loss was one of just four road defeats for Phoenix in its last 27 contests away from home.

The Suns posted a 103-82 victory over Houston on Monday. Leandro Barbosa tied a career high with 32 points and Boris Diaw added 15.