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Mavericks, Magic set to tangle in Big D

Jan 13, 2014 - 3:28 PM (SportsNetwork.com) - The Dallas Mavericks have won two straight and look to make it a bona fide winning streak Monday night when they welcome the Orlando Magic to American Airlines Center.

The Mavs' consecutive victories both came at the expense of the injury- depleted New Orleans Pelicans over the weekend. Dallas had lost three of four until the Pelicans hit the schedule.

After a 17-point drubbing in the Big Easy, the Pelicans were feisty in Big D on Saturday.

New Orleans was down three with under a second to go when Austin Rivers appeared to get fouled by Dallas' Monta Ellis. The refs were silent and the Mavs walked off with a 110-107 victory.

The NBA released a statement saying the officials erred in not calling the foul.

"After reviewing postgame video, we have determined a foul should have been called on Dallas' Monta Ellis for illegal contact on the arms of New Orleans' Austin Rivers while Rivers was attempting a 3-point field goal," said NBA president of basketball operations Rod Thorn. "Rivers should have been awarded three free throws with 0.6 left on the clock."

No matter what, it's a victory for the Mavericks.

The bizarre ending of the game overshadowed a spectacular performance from future Hall of Famer Dirk Nowitzki. He scored 40 points and Ellis added 26 points for the Mavericks. Jose Calderon tallied 17 points.

Shawn Marion missed the game with a shoulder issue and is day-to-day.

The Magic will mercifully end a five-game road trip on Monday and the results have been poor. They are 0-4 on the trek, and losers of seven straight overall and five in a row on the road.

Injury issues are mounting on this trip as well. Nikola Vucevic is out with a concussion and Arron Afflalo sat out Saturday's game against the Denver Nuggets with a foot problem. Jameer Nelson left in the third quarter Saturday with a sprained right index finger.

"I'll just listen to my body and hopefully the pain goes away by (Sunday)," Nelson told the team's website after the loss. "We've got a day off and we'll get some rest. We just have to keep fighting. This is our job and we can't just go out there and lay down. We have to play hard and do it together. There's an opportunity for other guys to play and make a name for themselves a little bit. Guys get to extend their role a little bit."

Tobias Harris totaled 22 points and nine rebounds, Glen Davis had 20 points and Victor Oladipo added 15 for the Magic. E'Twaun Moore and Nelson added 10 points apiece.

The Mavs have won four straight against the Magic, including an eight-point victory on Nov. 16 in Orlando. Despite the success, Dallas is just 1-3 at home against the Magic over its last four.