Red-hot Mavs go for 12th straight win vs. Kings

The scorching Mavericks posted another win on Wednesday, despite being without star forward Dirk Nowitzki for the majority of the night. Josh Howard and Jerry Stackhouse picked up the slack by scoring 26 and 23 points, respectively, to lead Dallas to an easy 117-98 triumph over Toronto.

Nowitzki left with under two minutes remaining in the first quarter with blurred vision and did not return. He finished with six points and six rebounds in just 10 minutes, marking the first time since March 13, 2004 the All-Star forward failed to score double-digits in a game.

After the game, team specialist Dr. Maurice Syrquin examined Nowitzki and determined that he had a bruised retina. He was then cleared to play and is probable for tonight’s contest.

Dallas completes a four-game homestand tonight and is 6-2 at AmericanAirlines Center so far this season.

The Mavericks won 13 in a row last season from January 14th to February 9, 2006.

Sacramento also comes in to the contest on a roll, as the Kings earned their third consecutive victory with Tuesday’s 93-80 home decision over Portland.

Ron Artest scored 28 points and pulled down eight rebounds for Sacramento while Mike Bibby contributed 19 points and 10 assists.

The win was the Kings’ 14th straight over the Clippers and 17th in a row over LA in ARCO Arena.

Brad Miller, in his second game back from a left foot injury, had 12 points and eight boards for the Kings.

Sacramento starts up a brief two-game road swing through the state of Texas tonight. The Kings, who are 2-3 away from home, will visit San Antonio on Saturday.

The Mavericks took two of three from Sacramento last season and has won nine of the last 12 meetings between the clubs. Dallas has also scored over 100 points in 13 of its last 14 matchups with the Kings