MyDallasMavs: Mavs Get Their 50th Win for the 11th Straight Season

The Mavs beat the Minnesota Timberwolves 104-96, getting their 50th win for the 11th straight season. They are now just the 3rd franchise to do this along with the Lakers and Spurs.

Shawn Marion came back after sitting out the last game due to a sprained right wrist, and started while Peja remained on the bench after coming back Sunday from missing six games with a stiff neck. Since they were both back, Brewer was inactive this game.

Kevin Love stayed behind to receive treatment on his strained groin, which was an up-side for the Mavs. Anthony Randolph started in his place.

Minnesota was much more of a threat without Love than expected. The Mavs just could not find a rhythm in the first quarter offensively and trailed 23-17 at the end of the first, hitting just 8 of 25. They shot 32% and missed their first nine attempts from beyond the arch. Chandler, once again, also got into early foul trouble.

Thanks to Marion, the Mavs started the second quarter on a 7-0 run, but Randolph continued to keep the Wolves ahead. Peja had yet another awesome shooting night from beyond the arch and helped the Mavs to a 13-4 run. The Mavs took the 49-47 lead going into halftime.

Randolph was having an outstanding night. At the half, he led all scorers with 23 points, hitting 10 of 13 from the field.

At the half, Marion, Dirk, and Peja racked up a combined 34 points to help the Mavs outshoot Minnesota 48% to 44%.

Dirk helped the Mavs on a 11-3 run to start the third quarter, but once again Randolph wouldn't let his team trail behind. He passed his career-high in the third quarter and continued to play with a well performance. At the end of the third, the Mavs held onto the lead, 76-72.

The Mavericks continuously tried to pull away with the lead all throughout the game, but the Wolves would just not cave and continued to make their shots. The Wolves took an 88-87 lead with just under 7 minutes left to go. Chandler added an and-1 with a free-throw as Dirk added on some points as well. JET swished in a 3-pointer with under a minute on the clock to put the Mavs up 101-96. The Mavs made stops in the final minute as Dirk and Marion hit free-throws to put the lead on lock, and ended the game on an 11-2 run, winning 104-96.

This win could not have been achieved without Dirk who racked up 30 points and 11 rebounds. As for the other starters, Marion added 17 points, Chandler had 9 points and 10 rebounds. On the down side, Roddy only had 3 points after going 1-5 from the field and 1-3 from beyond the arch while Kidd went scoreless on 0-5 shooting but racked up 13 assists and 6 rebounds. Off the bench, Terry had 18, and Peja racked up 16 points, including four 3-pointers.

Randolph led the Wolves with a career-high 31 points and 11 rebounds. Flynn had 13, Beasley had 12, and Johnson and Tolliver both added 11 points each.

The Mavs out-rebounded the Wolves 43-38. They also gave up 25 points off their 16 turnovers but were able to get 29 points off Minnesota's 19 turnovers.

Next, the Mavs will set out for their longest road trip of the season-6 road games in 10 days. It begins Saturday night in Utah where they will face the Utah Jazz. The Mavs lead the series 3-0 and are looking to sweep them for the season. The Mavs need to stay focused and play hard on this trip as the season almost comes to an end. The Mavs aren't intimidated on the road as they have a league-best 24-10 road record going into this trip.