DALLAS — Dirk Nowitzki scored 29 points and pulled down 10
rebounds while Jerry Stackhouse scored 23 as the Dallas Mavericks topped the
Chicago Bulls 102-94 in the NBA on Monday for their 11th consecutive home win.
Jason Kidd had 11 points, nine rebounds and eight assists on
his home debut for Dallas after being traded by the New Jersey Nets last week.
Kidd was picked second overall by Dallas in the 1994 draft.
"It’s always a little nerve-racking coming back," said Kidd.
"I was so excited to have this opportunity and this second
chance to come back and play for the franchise. I just wanted to make a good
impression."
The Mavericks improved to 38-19 are just game behind
Southwest Division-leading San Antonio and 1 1/2 games behind the Western
Conference-leading Los Angeles Lakers.
"I was happy to be back home. This is where it all started
for me," Kidd said.
"I didn’t get an opportunity with that franchise like this
one. This is different and I’m going to take advantage of that."
Ben Gordon had 25 points to lead Chicago while four other
Bulls finished in double figures. Drew Gooden scored 17, Larry Hughes came up
with 14 while Luol Deng and Thabo Sefolosha chipped in with 10 points apiece.
"It was really fun to watch," said Dallas coach Avery
Johnson.
"We just weren’t a very good passing team and now we’re
trying to become a better passing team. Because of that, you may have some
mistakes. But the way we’re starting to move the ball, I like it."
"I was happy with the welcome," Kidd said. "Hopefully, we’ll
jell and this will be a team that teams are afraid of come playoff time."
The Spurs recovered from a slow start to collect their sixth
consecutive win and move into sole possession of first place in the Southwest
Division with an 89-74 home win over the Atlanta Hawks.
Tim Duncan had 23 points and 10 rebounds to spark the Spurs
to their ninth win in 10 games. Tony Parker added 15 points and nine assists and
Manu Ginobili had 13 points.
Joe Johnson scored 17 points for Atlanta with Al Horford
getting 12 points and 13 rebounds.
San Antonio could only manage five points in the first
quarter on Ginobili’s three-pointer and two free throws by Duncan to trial by
11.
"I don’t think I have ever been in a game with that kind of
first quarter," Duncan said.
However, San Antonio improved in the second quarter by adding
25 points to their tally but still faced a seven-point deficit at the half.
The Spurs then outscored the Hawks 27-11 in the third quarter
and had 32 points in the fourth – two more than they managed in the entire first
half.
Parker added 13 of his total points in the third quarter to
lead the rally.
"Our defense stepped up and we got stops and that led to a
lot of points in transition," Parker said.
"We didn’t give up any lay-ups and that created some offense for us and led
to some threes."
