Dallas forward Dirk Nowitzki, 37 years old and with more than 1,300 NBA games under his belt, is still the Mavericks' go-to guy. The German veteran scored a game-high 29 points Sunday as the Mavericks edged the Minnesota Timberwolves 93-87 in Minneapolis, taking up the slack on a night when many of his teammates struggled offensively. "He's a guy that's prepared himself for greatness virtually every night," Mavericks coach Rick Carlisle said of Nowitzki. "One of the things we want to try to do is take some of the burden off him, but there's nights like tonight where it's unavoidable." Dallas forward Chandler Parsons added 14 points and center Zaza Pachulia scored 13, but it was Nowitzki's scoring touch that made the difference. He hit four of seven three-point attempts, while the rest of the Mavs were a combined two of 13 from beyond the arc. Nowitzki finished the game 12-for-22 from the floor and pulled down seven rebounds in 31 minutes. It was his fourth straight 20-point effort and his 13th such game this season. "The guys kept coming to me," Nowitzki said. "Defensively, it was a good effort tonight. We didn't have a lot of guys who were shooting the ball especially well, but I thought defensively we kept battling." Second-year guard Andrew Wiggins led the Timberwolves with 21 points. Dallas led by six at halftime and closed out the third quarter with an 18-4 scoring run. The Timberwolves trimmed the deficit to 85-82 late in the fourth quarter, but Nowitzki converted a three-point play with 1:30 remaining, and Dallas held on. Cavaliers 95, 76ers 85: Forward LeBron James scored 12 of his 37 points in a decisive 14-0 fourth-quarter run as the Cleveland Cavaliers beat the Philadelphia 76ers 95-85 on Sunday. James also finished with nine assists and seven rebounds for Cleveland, which improved its Eastern Conference-leading record to 26-9 with its seventh straight victory. The Cavaliers also won their fifth straight on the road and their sixth straight over Philadelphia, and completed their first four-game season sweep of the 76ers since 1995-96. Jahlil Okafor had 21 points to lead Philadelphia, which dropped its third straight and saw its NBA-worst record fall to 4-36. Rockets 107, Pacers 103 (OT): After a hail of three-pointers, Houston turned a late defensive stand into an overtime victory over Indiana at Toyota Center. The Rockets surrendered the first six points of overtime, all on layups, but rallied with long-range efforts from Patrick Beverley (16 points, six assists), Trevor Ariza (24 points) and Corey Brewer (12 points). Dwight Howard finished with 21 points and 17 rebounds, and James Harden had 21 points, nine rebounds and nine assists. Five Pacers scored in double figures, including Paul George, who had 20 points but just two after the third quarter. Clippers 114, Pelicans 111 (OT): Chris Paul had 25 points, 11 assists and five rebounds and Los Angeles captured its ninth win in a row. Jamal Crawford contributed 21 points for the Clippers, who had seven players score in double digits. Wesley Johnson and Luc Mbah a Moute added 15 and 14 points, respectively. Jrue Holiday had a game-high 29 points to lead the Pelicans, who dropped their third in a row and did not have Anthony Davis (back contusion). Tyreke Evans finished with 26 points, seven rebounds and seven assists. Grizzlies 101, Celtics 98: Zach Randolph had 25 points and 13 rebounds off the bench to lead Memphis back from a 21-point deficit against Boston at FedExForum. The Celtics had a chance to tie when Jeff Green made a bad inbounds pass with 3.9 seconds left. Avery Bradley (14 points) missed a three-point attempt and then Isaiah Thomas, who led the Celtics with 35 points and eight assists, made a three-pointer, but it was after the buzzer. Memphis won its sixth straight home game. Boston lost its third straight game. Other results: Knicks 100, Bucks 88; Nuggets 95, Hornets 92; Trail Blazers 115, Thunder 110; Jazz 86, Lakers 74. — Agencies
