Suns serve notice to the Mavericks

If Phoenix plays the Dallas Mavericks in May in the Western Conference finals, confidence should be no problem for the Suns.

Not with the way they ended the Mavericks’ nine-game winning streak Sunday.

With Leandro Barbosa leading a parade of big scorers with 29 points, the Suns beat the Mavericks for the second time in 18 days, 126-104, at Phoenix.

Amare Stoudemire added 24 points and Steve Nash had 23 points and 11 assists as the Suns ended Dallas’ winning streak and finished the season series, 2-2. After a scoreless first quarter, Shawn Marion had 20 points on eight-for-10 shooting. He also frustrated Dallas’ Dirk Nowitzki into 21 points on six-for-eight shooting.

“That’s about as good as we can play,” Phoenix Coach Mike D’Antoni said.

The Suns shot 65% (46 of 71), the highest in the NBA this season. They shot 86% in the fourth quarter (13 of 15).

“This doesn’t mean we’re so much better than Dallas, no,” D’Antoni said. “Dallas has got the best record, and they’re going to be the No. 1 seed, but I think it’s going to be very competitive and we’ll see what happens.”

The Suns won their last meeting, 129-127, in double overtime at Dallas.

Josh Howard scored 28 for Dallas, 18 in a tight first half that featured 13 ties and nine lead changes.

“They executed, and we never left the hotel,” Dallas Coach Avery Johnson said.

Detroit 94, Miami 88 -- After trailing much of the game, the Pistons outscored the Heat, 9-3, over the final 1:51 at Auburn Hills, Mich.

Richard Hamilton, sidelined four games by a concussion and flu, scored 17 of his 19 points in the second half for Detroit. Shaquille O’Neal had 23 points for Miami.

Washington 121, Milwaukee 107 -- The Wizards regained first in the Southeast Division but perhaps lost Caron Butler for the season because of a broken right hand suffered in the third quarter at Milwaukee.

Gilbert Arenas and Butler had 19 points apiece. Mo Williams scored 25 points for Milwaukee.

Utah 86, Houston 83 -- In a likely preview of a first-round playoff series, the Jazz overcame a late seven-point deficit at Houston to remain ahead of the Rockets in fourth place in the Western Conference standings.

Mehmet Okur scored 20 points for Utah. Yao Ming led Houston with 35 points and 16 rebounds.

Indiana 100, San Antonio 99 -- Jamaal Tinsley’s layup over Tim Duncan with 1.1 seconds left ended the visiting Spurs’ six-game winning streak. Tinsley finished with 20 points and eight assists. Tony Parker scored 22 points for San Antonio.

Denver 114, Seattle 103 -- The Nuggets ended a three-game losing streak behind Carmelo Anthony’s 32 points and Allen Iverson’s 26 at Seattle. Earl Watson led Seattle with a career-high 28 points.

Toronto 107, Charlotte 94 -- Chris Bosh had 24 points and 16 rebounds and the Raptors clinched their first playoff spot since 2002.

Chicago 105, Atlanta 97 -- Luol Deng scored 30 points and Kirk Hinrich had 22 at Atlanta in the Bulls’ 11th straight victory over the Hawks.

Golden State 122, Memphis 117 -- Jason Richardson scored 13 of his 26 points in the fourth quarter and the Warriors overcame the first-quarter ejection of Baron Davis at Oakland.

Boston 98, Cleveland 96 -- With LeBron James (knee) and Paul Pierce (elbow) sidelined, Delonte West made two free throws with 1.9 seconds left for the Celtics at Boston.

Gerald Green tied a career high with 25 points for Boston. Larry Hughes scored 24 for Cleveland.

Minnesota 105, Orlando 104 -- Ricky Davis scored a season-high 36 points -- including the winning three-pointer -- in overtime at Orlando, Fla. Grant Hill scored 23 for Orlando.

*

For the first time since dislocating his left shoulder Feb. 21, Miami guard Dwyane Wade said he will attempt a full practice today. No timetable was given for his return to game action.