WASHINGTON – Jason Terry scored 25 points, Tyson Chandler had a season-high 23 and 13 rebounds and the Dallas Mavericks beat the Washington Wizards 105-99 on Saturday night for their fifth consecutive victory.
Dirk Nowitzki added 21 points for the Mavericks, who have won 15 of 16 overall. Dallas improved to 8-1 in its last nine road games in the opener of a three-game trip.
John Wall had 24 points for lowly Washington, which has lost five in a row and 15 of 16. Nick Young scored 14 and Rashard Lewis finished with 13.
The Mavericks led 97-89 with 3:19 to play, but Wall nearly led the Wizards to a surprising victory. He had three straight layups, and on successive plays, he scored and was fouled by Jason Kidd, but both times missed free throws on opportunities for three-point plays.
Jordan Crawford, playing his first home game, tied it at 97 on a jumper with 1:36 left, but Chandler scored on a tip and Nowitzki and Terry each hit two free throws to make it 103-97 with 37.7 seconds remaining.
Shawn Marion had 13 points and 10 rebounds for the Mavericks, who improved to 42-16 record, second in the Western Conference to San Antonio. Kidd, who turns 38 next month, had 14 assists — 11 in the first half.
The Mavericks were a little rusty, playing in just their second game in nine days due to the All-Star break. Chandler had three dunks in an 11-0 run that got Dallas going and gave the Mavericks a 57-44 lead with 28.5 seconds left in the first half.
Wall connected on a 34-footer to cut it to 59-49 at the break, and the Wizards scored the first nine points of the second half. But Dallas quickly regained a 10-point lead.
It was the first time that Washington's Josh Howard faced Dallas since he and three others, who are no longer with the team, were traded for Caron Butler, Brendan Haywood and DeShawn Stevenson on Feb. 13, 2010. It also was the first home game for Mike Bibby, Maurice Evans and Crawford, acquired from Atlanta on Wednesday.
Howard had nine points in 29 minutes.
NOTES: Haywood had four points in 14 minutes. Stevenson did not score in two minutes. ... Washington has turned over its roster so drastically since the trade that Stevenson and Haywood played with just three of the 15 current Wizards: G Young, C JaVale McGee and F Andray Blatche. ... Blatche (sprained right hip) and F Al Thornton (sprained right hip) missed their second straight games. ... Butler, who made the trip, was exercising his injured right patella tendon on a bicycle in the locker room. ... Evans was called for a flagrant foul on Marion late in the third quarter.
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