Johnson Sets Mark as Mavericks Rally

On the night Avery Johnson moved into the NBA record book, the Dallas Mavericks made their defense-oriented coach proud with a little history of their own.

The Mavericks erased a 19-point deficit by holding the Cleveland Cavaliers to eight points in the third quarter -- the fewest they’ve allowed in any quarter -- and kept rallying for a 91-87 victory Tuesday night at Dallas, giving Johnson his record 66th victory over his first 82 games in charge.

Johnson helped inspire the comeback by calmly telling his players at halftime that he wanted them “to play like they’re on the playground, it’s 7-7, eight is game and if you lose you’ve got to wait an hour to get back on the court.”

“Everyone responded,” said Jerry Stackhouse, who started the second half and was on the court throughout the comeback.

Dirk Nowitzki and Marquis Daniels combined for 20 points during Dallas’ 29-4 run from the opening minutes of the third quarter to the start of the fourth. The streak took the Mavericks from being down by 19 points to leading by six.

“The third quarter was a disaster,” said Cleveland’s LeBron James, who had 36 points and 12 rebounds. “They put pressure on us and we couldn’t make shots. If we want to be an elite team, we can’t let teams come back like that.”

Nowitzki had 30 points and 13 rebounds.

Miami 121, Utah 83 -- Dwyane Wade had 19 of his 25 points in a first quarter in which the host Heat led by 27 points in its 12th victory in 13 games. Miami led by 39 entering the final period.

Matt Harpring had 20 points for Utah, which had no starter score more than eight points and got only 26 from its first five, one more than Wade.

San Antonio 96, New Orleans 81 -- Tony Parker had 20 points and 11 assists, Brent Barry made four three-pointers and all six shots from the floor and the Spurs sent the visiting Hornets to their season-worst seventh straight loss.

Chris Paul and Marc Jackson each scored 16 points for the Hornets, 2-9 since the All-Star break and 0-6 in March.

Phoenix 129, Seattle 120 -- Tim Thomas made 10 of 11 shots and scored 23 points off the bench and Raja Bell scored 25 points on 10-for-13 shooting at Seattle as the Suns shot 56% in their victory.

Shawn Marion added 24 points and 11 rebounds and Steve Nash had 23 points and eight assists to help Phoenix win for the 13th time in 15 games.

Ray Allen finished with 33 points for Seattle.

Memphis 93, Boston 76 -- Jake Tsakalidis scored a season-high 19 points and matched his career high with 16 rebounds for the Grizzlies at Memphis. Wally Szczerbiak led Boston with 18 points while Paul Pierce was limited to 15.

Toronto 111, Philadelphia 97 -- Chris Bosh scored 31 points, Darrick Martin had a season-high 18 points and 12 assists and the visiting Raptors held a 33-12 fourth-quarter scoring edge.

Chris Webber had 23 points and 11 rebounds and John Salmons scored a career-high 23 points for the 76ers, who played without Allen Iverson (foot).

Washington 119, Charlotte 114 -- Antawn Jamison had 35 points and 16 rebounds and Gilbert Arenas scored 34 to lead the Wizards at Charlotte.

Jumaine Jones scored 18 points for the Bobcats, who had seven players in double figures. Charlotte announced that forward Emeka Okafor will miss the rest of the season after developing severe tendinitis around a sprained right ankle that has sidelined him for 36 games.

Chicago 95, Portland 66 -- Ben Gordon scored 23 points at Chicago to help the Bulls win with their best defensive effort of the season. Zach Randolph scored 25 points for the Trail Blazers.