Mavs try to lasso win vs. Bucks

Dallas topped New Orleans/Oklahoma City, 105-89, on Tuesday to earn its seventh straight victory. All-Star Josh Howard scored 25 points and grabbed 10 rebounds in the win.

The Mavericks now lead Phoenix by six games for the top spot in the Western Conference, and with 12 games remaining, have an excellent shot of obtaining their fourth double-digit winning streak of the season.

Dallas owns three separate winning runs of 12, 13 and a franchise-best 17 games this season.

Jason Terry scored 19 points and tallied seven assists, while Dirk Nowitzki scored 15 and Devin Harris added 14 points for Dallas, which wrapped a six- game road trip perfect.

The club now returns home for two games where it is 31-4, having won 24 of its last 25 games as the host.

The Mavericks won their first meeting with Milwaukee, 99-93, on February 13, and have won five of seven overall in the series. Dallas has also won three in a row at home over the Bucks.

The Bucks have lost three straight, including Monday’s 106-87 defeat at the hands of the Houston Rockets. Michael Redd scored 26 points for the Bucks, who have lost 13 of 14 on the road and play the middle portion of a three-game swing tonight.

Milwaukee is 9-27 as the visitor this season and wraps it trek in Charlotte on Friday.

Charlie Bell scored 20 points against Houston, and Ruben Patterson added 16 points. Brian Skinner grabbed 11 rebounds.

Guard Maurice Williams is questionable for tonight’s against Dallas due to an upper respiratory infection.