Dallas 104, Minnesota 97

Dirk Nowitzki scored a season-high 33 points to carry the visiting Dallas Mavericks to a 104-97 victory over the Minnesota Timberwolves on Friday night.

Jason Terry came off the bench to add 16 points and ignite a game-breaking run in the fourth quarter as Dallas avenged a pair of double-digit losses to the Timberwolves last month and improved to 10-1 in its last 11 visits to Minnesota.

Kevin Love returned from a two-game suspension to score 32 points and grab 12 rebounds to lead the Timberwolves, who fell back below .500 with their second straight loss.

Terry, who scored a season-low five points at Denver on Wednesday and was dealing with a hip flexor, had nine points in an 11-2 spurt as the Mavericks opened a 92-79 lead after Minnesota had pulled within four points.

Point guard Jason Kidd returned from a six-game injury absence and contributed eight points and 10 assists for Dallas, which appeared to seized control in the third quarter when Nowitzki scored seven points in an 11-0 to help open a 69-53 lead.

The Timberwolves trailed by 17 before Michael Beasley (20 points) hit back-to-back 3-pointers to trigger a 17-5 run to close the quarter and cut the deficit to 83-78 entering the fourth.

• Minnesota will play their next game at home against New York. The Timberwolves have a W/L % of .429 after a win and .538 after a loss.
• Dallas will play their next game at home against Portland. The Mavericks have a W/L % of .667 after a win and .500 after a loss.