
Key Matchup:


Dallas will be in desperate need of someone to step up and fill the scoring void left by Nowitzki. Howard's perhaps the only player on the team capable of creating a good shot for himself off the dribble, and will be relied a lot in the coming weeks to do so. Need a good defensive effort from Melo to contain that.
Last Meeting: January 27th, 2008
90-85 Dallas victory
Carmelo missed the game with a sprained ankle
Carter scored 20 points and went 4/6 from 3
Nowitzki had 32 points on 12/17 shooting
Denver had just 17 assists, and 16 turnovers...and shot 38% from the field.
Denver: 43-28
Rank 11th in offense and 7th in defense
Denver hasn't won 4 consecutive games since November 20th
News on Nene
Keys to winning:
Maintaining a consistent sense of urgency to get into the playoffs and win the division.
Making the extra pass on a consistent basis.
Staying home on shooters
Treating the game like a playoff game in every way, regardless of the opponent.
Last 5 Games:
W Memphis
W Toronto
W New Jersey
L Philadelphia
L Detroit
Dallas: 44-26
Dirk Nowitzki is sidelined for at least 2 weeks with a left ankle and knee strain.
Haven't beat a team above .500 since trading for Jason Kidd at the deadline.
Last 5 Games:
? Clippers
L San Antonio
L Boston
L Lakers
W Miami
Photos:


Game Chat:
http://nuggets.proboards1.com/index.cgi?action=chat
Game Notes:
http://www.nba.com/nuggets/news/notes.pdf
http://www.nba.com/mavericks/news/notes.pdf
Playoff Picture: (as of monday night)
1 game behind Golden State for 8th seed
3 games behind Utah for the division lead (4th seed)