HOUSTON — After responding to one of their most disappointing losses of the season with a 111-103 victory Friday night over Indiana to conclude a four-game homestand, the Dallas Mavericks will look to keep trending in the right direction just 24 hours later.
Suffering a lopsided 120-89 loss Wednesday against Sacramento, the Mavericks (5-17) used that disappointing defeat as motivation two nights later against the Pacers. The shorthanded Mavs also picked up the slack without three of their top contributors, continuing to play without the services of 13-time All-Star Dirk Nowitzki (right Achilles strain), veteran guard J.J. Barea (left calf strain) and starting center Andrew Bogut (right knee injury).