Monta Ellis had a season-high 37 points and assisted on the go-ahead basket to spoil Dwight Howard's best offensive night for Houston, and the Dallas Mavericks rallied to beat the Rockets 123-120 Wednesday night.
Dallas was down one when Ellis drove and zipped a pass to Shawn Marion in the corner for the go-ahead 3-pointer with 47 seconds left.
Houston's James Harden had a chance to tie it with 9 seconds left but missed the second of two free throws. Jose Calderon made two free throws after a Houston foul, and Harden shot an airball on a 3-point try in the final seconds.
Howard made his first 11 shots and scored a season-high 33 points.
Dirk Nowitzki finished with a season-high 35, including 14 in the fourth, and passed Reggie Miller for 15th on the NBA scoring list. Nowitzki has 25,298 points, 18 ahead of Miller.
The Rockets led by 18 late in the third quarter before the Mavericks rallied in the fourth by shooting 74 percent and outscoring Houston 36-19.
Howard, who was 12 of 16 from the field, hit a free throw for a 119-114 lead before Nowitzki hit a jumper, then blocked a shot by Howard on the other end.
Sports Connection
Connecting you to your favorite North Texas sports teams as well as sports news around the globe.
Ellis assisted on a dunk by Marion, and after Chandler Parsons missed a layup, Ellis found Marion for the go-ahead shot.
The 35-year-old Nowitzki, in his 16th season with the Mavericks, passed Miller on a free throw after a technical foul for defensive 3 seconds on Howard late in the second quarter.
Miller, the second-most prolific 3-point shooter behind Ray Allen, scored 25,279 points in 18 seasons with Indiana from 1987-2005.
Brooklyn's Kevin Garnett is 14th at 25,340 points after scoring four in a 95-91 loss to Charlotte on Wednesday night.
Harden had 23 points on 6-of-14 shooting, and Parsons scored 21, including 18 in the first half when he was 3 of 4 from 3-point range.
A night after shooting 72 percent in the first half of a blowout win over Boston, Houston was at 68 percent at the break against Dallas and had 36 points in the paint -- 16 of those on dunks -- in taking a 68-61 lead.
NOTES: Nowitzki got a technical foul in the first half for complaining about a foul on a drive by Harden, who missed the free throw. ... The Rockets shot 75 percent in a 40-point first quarter. Harden, Parsons, Jones and Omar Casspi combined to go 5 of 6 from 3-point range as Houston took a 40-29 lead.
