Rajon Rondo scored a season-high 21 points in his fourth game with Dallas and Dirk Nowitzki added 14 to move up another spot on the NBA's scoring list in the Mavericks' 102-98 victory over the Los Angeles Lakers on Friday night.
Rondo, traded from Boston last week, also had eight rebounds and seven assists in Dallas' franchise-best fifth straight win against the Lakers in the regular season.
Kobe Bryant missed his third straight game for Los Angeles to rest his sore body. He could return Sunday at home against Phoenix.
Carlos Boozer scored 18 points for the Lakers, who lost again on the second night of a back-to-back after beating NBA-leading Golden State in the first game without Bryant.
Nowitzki, who had eight rebounds, and Monta Ellis were questionable before the game, Nowitzki with a stomach ailment and Ellis with an unspecified illness. Ellis had 15 points, seven assists and three steals.
Nowitzki passed Elvin Hayes for eighth on the NBA's scoring list, and 10th on the combined NBA-ABA list. The 36-year-old hit a long jumper on the first possession of the third quarter to surpass Hayes and asked out less than 4 minutes later after he came up short on a pair of open shots.
Nowitzki, in his 17th season, finished at 27,322 points, nine ahead of Hayes, who spent most of his 16-year career in Washington before finishing it in Houston in 1984.
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The Mavericks, still adjusting offensively since getting Rondo in a trade with Boston last week, weren't nearly as smooth as they were in a 140-106 rout of the Lakers last month in Dallas. They were 5 of 18 from 3-point range after tying a franchise record with 18 from beyond the arc in the last Los Angeles meeting.
Nick Young, who had 15 points on five 3-pointers, hit a pair from long range about a minute apart to help the Lakers get within five midway through the fourth quarter.
But Dallas' Charlie Villanueva, enjoying an expanded role since the Rondo trade sent Brandan Wright to the Celtics, hit two big 3s to spark a fourth-quarter run that put away the game. The 10th-year player finished with 13 points.
Tyson Chandler had 15 points and 12 rebounds, his 14th double-double of the season for Dallas.
TIP-INS
Lakers: G Wayne Ellington made his third straight start in Bryant's place and finished with 12 points, hitting a pair of 3-pointers to keep the outcome slightly in doubt in the final seconds. ... Los Angeles ended up with six players in double figures. The others were Jordan Hill (12), Wesley Johnson (11) and Ed Davis (10).
Mavericks: Nowitzki tied old teammate and close friend Steve Nash by playing in his 1,217th career game, 27th on the career list. They played about 400 regular-season games together over six seasons in Dallas. The 40-year-old Nash is still with the Lakers but not expected to play in the final season of his contract because of back problems. ... Rondo topped his 20-point outing for Boston last month against Oklahoma City.
UP NEXT
Lakers: Host Phoenix on Sunday.
Mavericks: Host Oklahoma City on Sunday.
