April 6 (The Sports Xchange) - J.J. Barea added another clutch performance to the best stretch of his career Wednesday night and the Dallas Mavericks secured a crucial 88-86 win over the Houston Rockets at American Airlines Center.
Dallas (40-38) has won five in a row and took a two-game lead over Southwest Division rival Houston (38-40) going into the last four games of the regular season. The Mavs and Rockets are locked in a three-team race with Utah (39-39) for the final two Western Conference playoff spots.
The victory also allowed Dallas to split the four-game season series with Houston.