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Mavs open homestand with win over Celtics

Mar 18, 2014 - 4:06 AM Dallas, TX (SportsNetwork.com) - Dirk Nowitzki scored 19 points with six rebounds as the Dallas Mavericks held on for a 94-89 win over the Boston Celtics on Monday.

Monta Ellis scored 17 points with seven rebounds, while Devin Harris gave 12 points and six assists for the Mavericks, who have won three straight and five of six.

"We knew it was going to be a dogfight," Ellis confessed. "But we stuck with it, made plays down the stretch when we needed, got defensive stops, got rebounds and came away with the win."

Jerryd Bayless scored 19 points with six assists and Kelly Olynyk had 16 points and nine rebounds for the Celtics, who have dropped their past five.

The Mavericks had led by 15 points late in the third quarter, but saw it evaporate to two after Bayless hit back-to-back jumpers to make it an 82-80 game with 2:39 to play.

Ellis countered with a 3-pointer, but Bayless answered with a 3 of his own before Nowitzki made another long bucket for an 88-83 game with 1:33 to play.

Bayless then hit two from the line and Brandan Wright hit a bucket at the other end.

The next sequence at the Boston end saw the team miss three straight attempts down low, but the team grabbed three offensive boards and Olynyk finally put it in with 33.8 seconds showing.

Avery Bradley then stripped the ball from Ellis and slammed it home for a one- point game with 21.6 seconds left.

After Ellis hit his two free throws, Bayless missed a shot and grabbed his own board, but Vince Carter blocked his next attempt and Shawn Marion sealed the win with two free throws.

"I'm frustrated in our lack of success but I'm not frustrated in our effort," said Boston head coach Brad Stevens.

Dallas held a 26-22 lead after the first quarter, and took a 50-43 lead into the break.

A 7-0 run by the Mavericks in the third quarter saw the team take a 64-49 lead as Boston went nearly five minutes without a point, but the Celtics closed the half with the final 12 points to make it a 64-61 game going into the final quarter.

Game Notes

The Celtics finished winless on the road (0-15) against the Western Conference in a single season for first time in franchise history ... Dallas hosts Minnesota on Wednesday ... Boston hosts Miami on Wednesday ... The Mavericks have won three straight and seven of eight against the Celtics ... Boston grabbed 36 rebounds in the game, 21 at the offensive end ... Dallas shot 42.3 percent from the floor, while Boston made 36.6 percent of its shots.