Nowitzki, Mavericks hold off Spurs, 95-92

Dirk Nowitzki scored 31 points, 14 in the fourth quarter, and the Dallas Mavericks beat the San Antonio Spurs, 95-92, on Friday night at San Antonio for their eighth straight victory.

Jason Terry had 14 points and 10 assists, Josh Howard had 12 points in his return to the lineup, and Erick Dampier contributed 11 in the Mavericks’ first game at San Antonio since their overtime victory in Game 7 of last season’s Western Conference semifinals.

Tim Duncan made three free throws with 12 seconds left to bring the Spurs to within one, but two from the line by Nowitzki and last-second misses by Robert Horry and Michael Finley sent the Spurs to their third home loss of the season.

Duncan had 29 points for the Spurs, followed by Tony Parker with 16 and Fabricio Oberto with 14.

Philadelphia 123, Chicago 108 -- Allen Iverson scored a season-high 46 points in his return to the lineup, and the 76ers led all the way at Philadelphia, ending a four-game losing streak. Luol Deng scored 28 points for the Bulls, who lost their sixth consecutive game and eighth straight on the road.

Indiana 97, Cleveland 87 -- Jermaine O’Neal scored 29 points to lead the Pacers over the Cavaliers at Indianapolis. Jamaal Tinsley finished with 19 points and six assists for the Pacers, who trailed by as many as 16 points in the first half. LeBron James had 30 points for Cleveland.

Orlando 107, Miami 104 -- Grant Hill scored 24 points, including a jump shot with 28 seconds left, and the Magic beat the slumping Heat at Miami. Dwight Howard had 23 points and 12 rebounds for the Magic. Dwyane Wade had 33 points and a career-high 15 assists.

Denver 140, Golden State 129 -- J.R. Smith scored 31 points and made four three-pointers at Denver as the Nuggets set a league high for points in a game this season in their fourth straight victory. Former UCLA standout Matt Barnes had 21 points for the Warriors.

Minnesota 86, New Orleans 79 -- Ricky Davis scored 23 points, and the Timberwolves used a 15-2 fourth-quarter run at Oklahoma City to hand the Hornets their first home loss of the season. New Orleans shot a season-low 33.8% from the field.

Atlanta 97, Toronto 93 -- Joe Johnson scored 27 points and Tyronn Lue made an 18-foot fadeaway with 30 seconds left at Atlanta to help the Hawks end a four-game losing streak. The Raptors lost for the seventh time in eight games.

New York 101, Boston 77 -- Steve Francis scored 22 points, Eddy Curry had 21 points and 10 rebounds, and the Knicks won at Boston to end a three-game losing streak. New York beat Boston for only the sixth time in its last 22 tries.

Memphis 95, Washington 80 -- Hakim Warrick scored 18 points to lead the Grizzlies at Memphis, Tenn., and hand the Wizards their seventh straight road loss. Gilbert Arenas, the NBA’s fourth-leading scorer, scored only four points for the Wizards.

Detroit 104, Charlotte 95 -- Richard Hamilton scored 26 points and reserve guard Carlos Delfino fueled a fourth-quarter surge to lead the Pistons at Auburn Hills, Mich. Detroit has won five in a row.

Phoenix 99, New Jersey 93 -- Amare Stoudemire rebounded from the second scoreless game of his NBA career with 25 points, 10 boards and seven blocked shots, and the Suns held on to beat the Nets in Phoenix for the 13th consecutive time.

Sacramento 109, Seattle 100 -- Kevin Martin blitzed the SuperSonics with an array of long jumpers and difficult drives, scoring a career-high 35 points to lead the Kings at Seattle.