Dallas Mavericks Team Report - December 1

(Basketball News) - Dallas dropped a 107-89 decision to the arch-rival San Antonio Spurs at American Airlines Center on Tuesday night.

Mavericks head coach Don Nelson allowed assistant Avery Johnson to run the show for this one, but the team did not respond. Johnson, who spent the bulk of his playing days in San Antonio, including the 1999 NBA Championship team, is being groomed as Nelson’s eventual successor and will coach five or six games this season.

Dirk Nowitzki paced Dallas with 21 points and 13 boards while Josh Howard scored 17. Marquis Daniels chipped in 15 points and six rebounds in a losing cause.

The Spurs controlled the tempo early on behind Parker’s 10 points in the opening quarter. Beno Udrih’s jumper at the first-period buzzer made it 26-14, leaving Dallas to face an uphill battle the rest of the way.

The Mavericks finally made some headway in the third quarter, closing out the stanza with a 17-6 run to get within 69-65.

But the fourth quarter belonged to San Antonio and Devin Brown. His three- point play in the opening minute put the Spurs up 74-65.

Jason Terry scored 10 points in 26 minutes off the bench for the Mavs, who turned the ball over 22 times.

The Mavericks continue their four-game homestand against the Houston Rockets on Thursday night.