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Mavericks clip Raptors' wings 111-94
( 2003-12-16 15:00) (Agencies)

Don Nelson reached two career milestones Monday night, though the Dallas Mavericks coach wasn't interested in discussing them.

Antoine Walker scored 27 points and Steve Nash had 23 points and 11 assists to help Nelson move into sole possession of second place on the all-time victory list with the Mavericks' 111-94 win over the Toronto Raptors.

"I'm glad it's over and we can quit talking about it," Nelson said.

Nelson, who also was involved in his 3,000th NBA game as a coach or player, has 1,111 coaching victories ¡ª one more than Pat Riley.

Former Raptors coach Lenny Wilkens tops the list with 1,292 victories.

"He's a Hall of Fame coach and it's great to play for him," Nash said. "It's special to be part of this milestone."

Antawn Jamison came off the bench to score 23 points, two more than all of Toronto's reserves. Jamison has outscored the opposition's bench five times this season.

Dirk Nowitzki added 14 and rookie Josh Howard had 14 points and 14 rebounds as the Mavericks improved to 12-1 at home.

Vince Carter, bothered recently by a sore Achilles' tendon, had 21 points, and Donyell Marshall added 18 points for Toronto.

Rookie Chris Bosh, making his NBA debut in his hometown, had 14 points and eight rebounds for the Raptors, who lost their third straight.

Perhaps feeling a few jitters playing in front of family and friends, Bosh missed a dunk 1:19 after the opening tip, but he was successful on his second dunk attempt 52 seconds later. Bosh threw down another spectacular dunk in the second period, but picked up a technical for hanging on the rim.

"It's good to be out there playing in front of your family," Bosh said. "It would have been better if we had a victory but it was still fun."

Toronto, which led by as many as 13 in the third quarter, got as close as 82-81 early in the fourth quarter on Lonny Baxter's three-point play.

But Dallas used a 12-2 run capped by Walker's 3-pointer with 5:32 remaining to push the lead to 94-83 as Dallas raised its energy level after a lethargic first half.

"We weren't playing aggressive. We were just lollygagging around," Walker said. "Our defensive intensity picked up. We were able to get out and run. That gave us some easy opportunities on the other side."

The Mavericks went up 101-86 on Nash's layup with 3:35 left and cruised to their fifth victory in seven games.

Toronto got seven consecutive points from Carter during a third-quarter run to build a 63-50 advantage.

But Dallas answered with a 15-2 spurt capped by Howard's layup to tie it at 65.

Nowitzki's 11-foot turnaround with 2.8 seconds left in the third quarter put the Mavericks in front, 77-76.

The Raptors, who started the night averaging a league-low 84.7 points per game, took a 54-46 halftime lead by establishing a half-court game against the run-and-gun Mavericks.

Toronto was unable to maintain that deliberate tempo, however, as Dallas held a 34-18 edge in the fourth quarter.

"We did a good job of controlling the tempo in the first half, but when you take some quick shots and turn the ball over, (the Mavericks) are going to run out and get some easy plays," Toronto coach Kevin O'Neill said. "We played the way they wanted to play and they shot the heck out of it in the fourth quarter."

Notes:@ Dallas was without swingman Michael Finley (sprained right big toe) and center Shawn Bradley (back spasms). ... The Raptors beat the Mavericks 77-71 on Nov. 6 in Toronto in their only other meeting this season. ... Dallas has won seven of its last nine against Toronto, four straight at home. ... The Mavericks converted a season-high 11 3-pointers. ... Dallas is 3-0 when it has three players with 20 or more points.

 
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