As the 2014 season winds down, the San Antonio Spurs (60-18) are once again standing tall at the top of the Western Conference. Tonight, they'll head to Dallas to face off with the Mavericks (48-31), who are desperately clinging to a No. 7 seed. Watch the game on TNT or live stream it by clicking this link. Spurs fans can find the game on 1200 WOAI, while Mavs fans can hear the radio broadcast on 103.3 ESPN.
Despite myriad injuries throughout the entire season the Spurs have reeled off 60 wins and are a near-lock to have home court advantage throughout the postseason. "They're a very poised team," Mavericks swingman Vince Carter said. "I mean, they know who they are, and they do a great job of executing."
The Mavs are assured no such thing as a playoff berth, although earning a victory tonight would be a tremendous step forward. To do that, they'll need a big effort from Dirk Nowitzki, who is averaging 21.6 points per game in his 16th NBA season. On Tuesday, Nowitzki passed Oscar Robertson on the all-time scoring list and entered the NBA's Top 10.
"He's such a great player. Nobody stops him," Spurs head coach Gregg Popovich said. "At least giving him a different look makes me feel better like I'm trying, like I'm doing something."
After reeling off 19 straight wins, the Spurs have dropped two of their past three. Dallas will be hoping San Antonio's already peaked. "You can't win every game," forward Boris Diaw said. "We just wish we played better. Winning or losing, we just wish we played our game better."
They were trounced Tuesday by the Minnesota Timberwolves, but didn't have Tony Parker in the lineup and had Manu Ginobili leave in the third quarter with a leg injury. His status for tonight is up in the air, but it's likely Popovich will choose to rest his ailing starters and keep them fresh for a postseason run.
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