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Mavericks face lowly Celtics, look for fifth straight win

Mar 23, 2007 - 2:33 PM Dallas (56-11) at Boston (20-48) 7:30 pm EDT

BOSTON (Ticker) -- The Dallas Mavericks used a game against the lowly Boston Celtics to get back on track. Now, they can't stop rolling.

After winning the first three games of a six-game road trip, the Mavericks aim for their fifth straight win Friday when they visit the Celtics.

After losing two straight games for the first time since early November, Dallas bounced back with a 106-101 victory over struggling Boston on March 16.

All-Star Dirk Nowitzki scored 19 of his 30 points in the fourth quarter and grabbed 12 rebounds while Josh Howard added 30 and eight.

But despite the win, the Mavericks struggled for most of the contest and needed a huge effort by Nowitzki to survive against an inferior opponent. But that tough victory has righted their ship.

On Wednesday, Dallas posted its fourth straight win, a 98-90 victory over Cleveland. Nowitzki netted 23 to lead five players in double figures.

Boston owns the worst record in the Eastern Conference and has dropped three of its last four games, including a 92-84 loss to Charlotte on Wednesday.

The Celtics squandered an 18-point lead after star guard Paul Pierce got poked in the eye and left the game in the third quarter.

Boston has lost six straight and 12 of its last 13 meetings with Dallas.