DALLAS -- Dirk Nowitzki looked like a 35-year-old veteran playing his fourth game in five nights in the first half against New Orleans -- and so did everyone else. The Dallas star played like an MVP in his prime after halftime, when the game improved substantially for both teams. Nowitzki scored a season-high 40 points, and the Dallas Mavericks recovered from a brutal first quarter and held to beat New Orleans 110-107 on Saturday night for their second win in as many days against the Pelicans. The teams combined for more points in the third quarter than the entire first half. Nowitzki was the perfect illustration of the difference, getting 20 points in the third and hitting seven straight shots after starting just 2 of 9 from the field. "It was an ugly game in the first half," Nowitzki said. "Then all of a sudden the basket started opening up and everybodys confidence went up." Monta Ellis broke a 99-all tie with two free throws, and Nowitzki hit three more after getting fouled on a 3-pointer by Jason Smith. Nowitzki was 15 of 16 from the line and Ellis, who scored 26 points, made 12 of 15. Dallas was 39 of 45 as a team. Anthony Davis had 28 points and 14 rebounds for the Pelicans, who lost their fifth straight and dropped six games below .500, both season highs. The Mavericks, who won three of four games in a five-night stretch, almost blew a seven-point lead in the last 2 minutes after shooting 27 per cent in the first half, when Dallas led 42-37 before outscoring New Orleans 42-40 in the third. Davis made five of six free throws to get New Orleans within two at 106-104 with 18 seconds left. Dallas had to call timeout after having trouble inbounding the ball, and Nowitzki hit two foul shots for a four-point lead and his first 40-point game since April 16, 2012, at Utah. He also had 40 in that one. "Oh man, unbelievable," Ellis said of Nowitzki. "Ive seen that a lot throughout my career. For him to come out and give us that lift tonight really opened up a lot for us as a team." Darius Miller hit his fourth 3-pointer of the second half to get New Orleans within a point, and Jose Calderon hit two free throws for Dallas for the last of his 17 points with 9 seconds left. Austin Rivers tried to get off a 3-pointer at the buzzer but was tied up by Ellis. Rivers pleaded for a foul call as the referees were leaving the court, and coach Monty Williams said video showed Ellis had his arm across both of Rivers arms. "Thats embarrassing," said Williams, whose team also was playing for the fourth time in five nights. "Thats not right. A no-call in a game like that when Dirk gets the same call in the first half and they shot 45 free throws? Certainly, were not going to blame the game on the referees." Eric Gordon had 20 points for New Orleans before fouling out on a driving layup by Ellis that put Dallas up 106-99. Al-Farouq Aminu had 15 points and 11 rebounds. The Pelicans were playing their second straight game without leading scorer Ryan Anderson and assist leader Jrue Holiday. Anderson missed his fifth game with a herniated disc and is out indefinitely. Holiday has a stress fracture in his right shin. The Mavericks were without starter Shawn Marion for the fourth straight game with shoulder and rib injuries. Miller hit back-to-back 3-pointers and Davis had an alley-oop dunk and a jumper during a 10-2 run that put New Orleans up 95-92. In the first half, both teams appeared to be feeling the effects of their previous game a night earlier and 500 miles away in New Orleans -- a 107-90 Dallas win. The Mavericks were 2 of 19 from the field early in the second quarter when Nowitzki got fouled while making a 3-pointer and converted the four-point play. While that sparked a run to Dallas first lead, it didnt improve the shooting much. Dallas finished the first half 9 of 33 on field goals, and New Orleans was just 12 for 37 from the field in the first half. The ugly start also included multiple air balls and an air-mailed pass by Gordon -- about 10 feet over everybodys head into the third row behind the Dallas bench. It was one of six turnovers in the first half and eight overall for Gordon. NOTES: Mavericks rookie PG Shane Larkin sprained his right ankle in the third quarter and didnt return. ... The Mavericks didnt get their first field goal until Calderon hit a 3-pointer with 6:55 left in the first quarter. ... Nowitzki had the fourth 20-point quarter of his career. His highest was franchise-record 29 against Utah in the fourth quarter on Nov. 3, 2009. Cheap Fake Jerseys .I shared with him how much I appreciated all he had done for us, Celtics president of basketball operations Danny Ainge said of that Thursday night farewell. Fake Jerseys .com) - Russell Westbrook and Kevin Durant combined for 51 points and the Oklahoma City Thunder took down the struggling Bucks 114-101 on Tuesday. http://www.fakejersey.com/fake-nfl-jerseys/ . Orlando is to begin play in the MLS for the 2015 season. Kaka, who currently plays with AC Milan, is expected to be loaned out to his home club Sao Paulo for the upcoming season before joining Orlando for next season. Fake Jerseys Outlet . The Jets have now won three straight at home and four of the last five at the MTS Centre. After a scoreless first period, Brad Marchand scored his first goal in eight games eight seconds into the second. Fake NCAA Jerseys .C. United on Saturday night and boost the Unions playoff hopes. Nick DeLeon scored in the 36th minute for United (3-23-6), which had ample opportunities to build on its lead but went its 10th straight match without a victory.(SportsNetwork.com) - The Los Angeles Clippers didnt need much help from their bench to keep a winning streak intact and look to make it six in a row Thursday against the local Lakers. The Clippers handed the Phoenix Suns a 104-96 loss on Tuesday, as all five starters scored in double digits. Matt Barnes led the bunch with 28 points, Blake Griffin followed with 22 and Darren Collison ended with 18 points. "Matt Barnes kept us in the game the way he was shooting the ball and we got stops and thats when we really got back in the game. It was intense." said Griffin. DeAndre Jordan had 10 points and grabbed 17 rebounds, while Chris Paul had 14 points and nine assists for the Clippers, who have won five in a row and eight of their last 10 contests. The Clippers have won five straight on three separate occasions this season. The Clippers bench had just 12 points and was without top reserve Jamal Crawford (calf), who has missed back-to-back games and is questionable against the Lakers. Crawford is averaging 19.0 points this season Clippers forward Jared Dudley is questionable Thursday because of back spasms. Meanwhile, Griffin needs 30 rebounds for 3,000 in his career and has scored 20 or more points in his last 20 games. He passed Dominique Wilkins for the most consecutive games with 20-plus points since the Clippers moved to Los Angeles in 1984-85. Bob McAdoo holds the franchise record with 57 such games. Griffin is averaging 27.8 pointts during his 20-game streak for the Clippers, who have won three in a row on the road and are 17-15 as the guest.dddddddddddd They are 25-11 against Western Conference opponents and have scored 107.2 ppg this season. Griffin was named Western Conference Player of the Month for February. Los Angeles will start a three-game homestand Saturday versus Atlanta, Phoenix and Golden State. The Lakers had a two-game win streak stopped their last time out with a 132-125 decision versus the New Orleans Pelicans. Pau Gasol had 29 points and 12 rebounds, Kent Bazemore scored 23 and Jordan Farmar added 20 points and eight assists for the Lakers, losers in four of six and eight of their last 11 games. The Lakers trailed 35-23 after the first quarter and 67-51 at halftime. A second-half surge (74-65) wasnt enough and the Lakers shot 54.1 percent. "We kind of had an emotional hangover to start. Took us at least two quarters to get into anybody. Youve got to every night bring it," said Lakers coach Mike DAntoni. "Its our fault. We can defend a whole heck of a lot better than that." DAntonis squad is 10-19 at home and will visit Denver on Friday. The Lakers have allowed 100 or more points in four straight and eight of nine games, while the Clippers have posted that many in five in a row and 12 of 13. The Clippers and Lakers have split two meetings this season and will meet again April 6. The Clippers have lost 10 of their last 12 at the Lakers. ' ' '