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 The Celtics completed an impressive sweep in the Lone Star State, becoming the first team to go 3-0 in San Antonio, Houston and Dallas since the Sacramento Kings in November 2001. Boston gave the Spurs their first home loss in six weeks, ended Houston's 22-game winning streak, then gave the Mavericks just their sixth home loss.
Allen, recovering from a jammed left ankle, scored 21 points in 31 minutes. His clutch jumper came on his only shot of the final period. He spent the first 10:06 on the bench, then went back in after Dallas had just gone ahead 88-87.
Paul Pierce had 22 points and a season-high 13 rebounds and Kevin Garnett added 20 and 13. Boston upped its NBA-best record to 55-13 while winning for the 14th time in 15 games. This was the Celtics' first win in Dallas since 2000, ending a seven-game skid.
Dirk Nowitzki had 22 points and 19 rebounds, and Jason Kidd had nine assists, 11 rebounds and two points, but Dallas fell to 0-7 against teams with winning records since Kidd arrived.
Josh Howard added 24 points and Jerry Stackhouse had 17 for Dallas, which led for most of the second half but couldn't pull it out at the end.
Neither team led by more than seven and the intensity escalated. Things got snippy in the fourth quarter, especially between Nowitzki and Garnett, although nothing ever escalated beyond tough play.
The Mavericks went up 75-68 early in the fourth, but the Celtics wiped that out with a 16-5 burst. Nowitzki put Dallas back in front with a pair of free throws after Boston center Kendrick Perkins' sixth foul with 1:54 left, then both teams struggled to score until Allen swished his jumper from the left side. He finished 7-of-17, but only 3-of-9 behind the arc.
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The first half was filled with spurts, from Dallas closing the first quarter on a 12-2 run to Boston opening the second on a 14-4 roll. The Mavericks enjoyed the final push, a 13-5 streak featuring a go-ahead three-point play by Nowitzki and a mad-dash layup by Kidd that sent them into the locker room ahead 48-46.
Notes: Boston remained at a one-Allen maximum, as Ray Allen's return coincided with Tony Allen sitting out with a bruised lower back. ... Nowitzki came into this game averaging 27.2 points per game against Boston for his career, his highest against any foe. ... By dropping Dallas to 29-6 at home, Boston takes over the NBA's second-best home record at 29-5. ... The Mavs had a season-high 12 blocks. They had 11 the previous game.
[Associated Press; By JAIME ARON]
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