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 They took it out on the Utah Jazz.
All-Star forward Dirk Nowitzki had a big outing and the Dallas
Mavericks rebounded from a rough outing the night before to the
Trail Blazers with a 105-82 blowout win over the Utah Jazz on
Friday.
"We were unhappy obviously with the result (Thursday) night with the
outcome in the second half," Nowitzki said, referring to the Mavs'
108-87 TNT-televised setback at the Moda Center. "We talked about
it. We had a long meeting about it (Friday) afternoon and just
wanted to set a good tone again and keep it up really."
That, they did against Utah.
Especially Nowitzki.
The forward only needed 28 minutes to notch a game-high 27 points in
a brilliant offensive effort at EnergySolutions Arena. He found his
outside stroke, hitting five 3-pointers and shooting 11-of-18
overall.
The 7-foot German also grabbed 10 rebounds to notch his first
double-double of the season, helping Dallas improve to 4-2.
 "Dirk knew how important this game was," Dallas coach Rick Carlisle
said. "Everybody better enjoy watching Dirk Nowitzki while he's
still playing. There isn't going to be another one like him. This is
a once-in-a-lifetime guy, and he's a total game-changer. He was
fantastic tonight."
Guard Alec Burks scored a team-high 14 points, but the Jazz (2-4)
couldn't match the performance they had in Wednesday's thrilling
102-100 victory over Cleveland.
Small forward Gordon Hayward, the hero against the Cavs, only scored
12 points on 3-of-9 shooting for the cold-shooting Jazz, who made a
season-low 42.6 percent from the field in their worst offensive
output this year.
"I thought they had us discombobulated offensively," Jazz coach Quin
Snyder said.
Center Tyson Chandler also had a double-double for the Mavs, scoring
15 points with 13 rebounds. Guard Monta Ellis chipped in 13 points
and center Brandan Wright added 12 points off the bench.
The Mavs fared better in the second night of their Portland-Utah
back-to-back than Cleveland did earlier this week. Both teams lost
big in Rip City, but Dallas, despite arriving at its Utah hotel at
2:30 a.m. after its West Coast struggle, responded with an energetic
performance and win in Salt Lake City.
"They're a really good team," Hayward said. "We weren't executing
offensively and when we're not scoring it puts a lot of pressure on
our defense. It's hard against a team like that. They make you pay."
Two nights prior, the Cavs lost a 102-100 decision thanks to
Hayward's buzzer-beating shot.
This was the second time in eight days the Mavericks soundly
defeated the Jazz. Dallas earned a 120-102 win at home on Oct. 30 in
a game in which it led by as many as 30 points.
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The scoring disparity didn't quite match that blowout, but Dallas
had its most dominating second half of the season. The Mavs led by
eight at halftime, but enjoyed a 53-38 advantage after halftime to
win going away.
This was the first game in which the Mavericks outscored an opponent
in the third quarter. Dallas earned a 26-18 edge in the third
against Utah after being outscored by an average of 10.7 points in
that period by its five previous opponents.
Dallas scored 32 points off of 23 Utah turnovers. The Mavs only had
nine turnovers to go with 23 assists.
"The (23) turnovers, that's a killer," Snyder said. "It's hard to
overcome that many mistakes."
The Jazz got some bad news in the first half when rookie Rodney Hood
left the game for good with right Plantar fasciitis. The rotation
player will be reevaluated Saturday.
Utah's other rookie, point guard Dante Exum, scored a career-best 11
points with five assists.
Utah begins a weeklong, five-game road trip Sunday in Detroit.
Dallas returns home to kick off a four-game homestand Saturday
against Miami.
NOTES: Mavs PG Raymond Felton doesn't have any physical restrictions
and could begin his four-game suspension beginning Sunday, the
Dallas Morning News reported. Felton, who sprained his right ankle
on Oct. 10, must serve a league-imposed suspension when he returns
because of a weapons charge. ... Jazz F Gordon Hayward, who has a
career free-throw percentage of .816, entered the game having hit
all 20 attempts this season. ... The Jazz waived G/F Jordan Hamilton
just eight days after claiming him off waivers. The transaction
gives Utah a roster of 14 players, one shy of the league maximum.
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