BERLIN — German basketball star Dirk Nowitzki scored a low-key eight points to help 2011 NBA champion the Dallas Mavericks enjoy an 89-84 win over Berlin Alba in an exhibition game Saturday. The 34-year-old spent just over half an hour on court in front of 14,000 spectators at Berlin's sold-out 02 World while center Chris Kaman and point guard Darren Collison were top-scorers for the Mavericks with 14 points each. Power forward Shawn Marion posted 11 rebounds. “It wasn't a great game from us,” said Nowitzki, who got a warm reception from the Berlin crowd whenever the ball came his way. “The combinations don't yet work. We made a few simple mistakes, but it was a fun game. The atmosphere was good.” The hosts out-scored their high-profile guests in both the first and third quarters with Alba's new forward Deon Thompson claiming 20 points for the Euroleague side. To make matters worse for Dallas, guard Rodrigue Beaubois picked up a knee injury in the third quarter. With eight new players on their roster, the Mavericks struggled after the break and never got more than a few points ahead of the German team only making sure of victory late in the game. With 11.9 seconds left, Nowitzki produced two free throws to put his team 88-84 ahead to make sure of victory. This was the Mavericks first warm-up game before the new NBA season starts on Oct. 30 against the LA Lakers and Dallas next plays FC Barcelona Tuesday in its final European game before heading back to the United States. Nowitzki later joked that he feels too old to slamdunk. “Right at the end, the knee buckled a bit, so I didn't get high enough to hang in the air. That was a bit embarrassing, I think I am too old to dunk,” he quipped.Mexico eyes expansionAs the world's top professional basketball league gears up for Sunday's preseason launch in Mexico City, NBA officials are hinting at permanent expansion south of the border. Sunday's face-off between the Orlando Magic and New Orleans Hornets marks the 20th exhibition game to be played in Mexico, the most of any country outside the US or Canada, and the first such game at the brand new Mexico City Arena. The NBA already has concrete plans to expand its Mexican footprint. “Next year and the year after that there will be regular season games here, which is really huge,” said Cedric Ceballos, a former NBA player turned league ambassador. “Those two years are the big test to see what happens.” — Agencies
