DALLAS -- Dirk Nowitzki is an All-Star again, and the big German is playing like he did when he went to 11 straight midseason showcases. Nowitzki scored 34 points and the Dallas Mavericks held off Sacramento 107-103 Friday night, handing the Kings their sixth straight loss in another game without leading scorer DeMarcus Cousins. The 35-year-old had his second straight 30-point game for the first time in nearly two years and helped the Mavericks rally in the fourth quarter after they squandered a double-digit lead in the first half and fell behind by 14 in the third. "Ive been in a good groove," said Nowitzki, who was named an All-Star reserve Thursday after his long streak of appearances ended last season when he missed the first 27 games after knee surgery. "Before the last three, I didnt really have a good groove." Rudy Gay scored 35 to lead the Kings, who have the worst record in the Western Conference at 15-31 and were without Cousins for the fifth straight game because of a sprained left ankle. He is likely to miss his sixth straight in San Antonio on Saturday night. "We have to learn how to be a winning team," said Gay, who had 18 at halftime by making all six shots from the field and 6 of 7 free throws. "We just have to play a whole solid game. Thats what we need to do for us to get off that slide were on right now." Nowitzki backed up his 12th All-Star nod while Cousins had to sit out a chance to show he belonged in the Feb. 16 game. The fourth-year centre is in the top 10 in the league in scoring and rebounding. "Theres always guys that deserve it," said Nowitzki, whos in his 16th season. "Maybe this is my last hurrah." Brandan Wright had his first double-double of the season with 10 points and 10 rebounds, including a floater in the lane that put the Mavericks ahead for good at 96-94. Dallas was up 102-100 after a bucket by Gay with 24 seconds left. But the Kings didnt foul right away, and Vince Carter found Monta Ellis underneath for a three-point play. Sacramento was still within two after a 3-pointer by Marcus Thornton, but Ellis made a pair of free throws to make it a two-possession game with 4.6 seconds left. Ellis was in his worst three-game scoring slump of the season and didnt have a point most of the first half before getting 11 in the fourth quarter and finishing with 20. "It was one of those nights where he could have easily gotten frustrated, but he didnt," Dallas coach Rick Carlisle said. "He just kept playing the whole game and it came around." The Mavericks, who couldnt hold a double-digit lead in the first half, went back in front with a 9-0 run capped by a pair of free throws from Nowitzki for an 89-87 lead midway through the fourth quarter. The Kings matched their longest skid of the season despite starting the second half with a 17-3 run that included consecutive 3-pointers from Isaiah Thomas, who scored 13 in the third quarter but was held to two points on 1-of-7 shooting in the fourth. Thomas finished with 19, but he and Gay were the only double-figure scorers for the Kings. "Im frustrated with myself because my shots not falling," Thomas said. "DeMarcus makes things a lot easier for me. Hopefully he gets back soon." Sacramentos lead grew to 14 on a layup by Aaron Gray before the Mavericks finished the third on an 11-3 run highlighted by Ellis steal and breakaway dunk that got the deficit back under 10 at 78-70. The Mavericks played without Shawn Marion, who has lingering soreness from shoulder and ribs injuries sustained in early January. He missed the first four games after getting injured. NOTES: Dallas Jose Calderon and Thomas were called for a double technical when Calderon went to the floor away from the ball after making contact with Thomas. Calderon got up yelling at Thomas and kept going after a whistle stopped play, leading to the technical. The pair had a friendly halftime chat mediated by referee Tony Brothers. ... Nowitzki had his third career game of at least 38 points and 17 rebounds in Wednesdays loss to Houston. The Mavericks won the other two. ... The Mavericks recalled G Ricky Ledo from the NBA Development League before the game and sent him back down afterward. Cheap NFL Jerseys ." Also, defencemen "were found to be at a higher risk of suffering a concussion than other players, perhaps due to turning their back to retrieve pucks along the boards, which leaves them vulnerable. Cheap NFL Jerseys China . 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Pedroia reached the milestone with a little panache, hitting a grand slam in the sixth inning and propelling the Boston Red Sox to a 7-1 win over the Oakland Athletics on Friday night.MINNEAPOLIS -- The Toronto Raptors have had every excuse to give in this season. Theyve had injuries to key players, turned the roster over significantly with an early season trade and had low expectations after a regime change portended a possible tear down and rebuild. Kyle Lowry doesnt make excuses. Dwane Casey doesnt make excuses. And the Raptors havent given an inch while climbing the Eastern Conference ladder. Lowry had 20 points, 12 rebounds and 11 assists for his fourth career triple-double, lifting the Raptors to a 111-104 victory over the Minnesota Timberwolves on Sunday night. DeMar DeRozan added 25 points and seven rebounds and Steve Novak hit five 3-pointers for the surprising Raptors (35-26), who have won nine of their last 11 games to surge to third place in the East. They are nine games over .500 for the first time since 2006-07. "We try to keep everybodys spirits high even if its not going well on the basketball court and we dont let nothing get down on us," said DeRozan, whose team shot 58.3 per cent (14 for 24) on 3-pointers. "Thats the cool thing about our team. We continue to keep it going." Kevin Love had 26 points, 11 rebounds and nine assists, and Nikola Pekovic added 17 points and 11 rebounds for the Timberwolves. Minnesota has started a crucial four-game homestand with two losses in three games, and the teams hopes of climbing from 10th in the West into the playoff picture are looking bleak. "Weve got to go out and win games were not supposed to win," Wolves coach Rick Adelman said. "Thats the approach you have to take. If youre going to get down and you start moping about it, youre going to lose again." The Raptors got some bad news early in the day when they learned Patrick Patterson, a key member of the bench during their post-Rudy Gay trade surge, would miss the next seven to 10 days with a sprained right elbow. But just as they have done over the last two months, the Raptors found someone else to step up. Novak had played less than 13 minutes over the last month, but he scored a season-high in 18 minutes and Terrence Ross (15), Amir Johnson (15) and Greivis Vasquez (12) all reached double figures in scoring as well to earn a toughh road win.dddddddddddd "I cant say enough good things about those guys cause its going to take all of us, especially with Patrick being out," Casey said. The Wolves entered the night five games behind Dallas and Phoenix for the eighth and final spot in the West. Theyve now lost two of the first three games of a crucial four-game homestand. They put up a fight in this one, trimming a 10-point fourth-quarter deficit to 93-91 with five minutes to play. But Lowry drilled a 3-pointer, the Raptors locked down with the kind of defence that has gotten them this far and DeRozan finished the Wolves off with a 3-pointer from the left wing to improve Toronto to 26-2 when leading after three quarters. "Twenty games left, anything can happen," Love said. "We obviously have to go on some sort of a run. But if those other teams keep winning and pulling games out of their you-know-what, were in trouble." When Love sat down for a rest in the second quarter, the Raptors blasted Minnesota with a 15-0 run to take a 46-33 lead. Love ended the run with a jumper, fed Pekovic three straight times with pinpoint entry passes and also drew a charge during a 17-2 run that gave Minnesota a 50-48 lead. DeRozan and Ross both went to the bench early in the third quarter when they each picked up their fourth fouls and thats when Lowry took over. He was tenacious in his attack, hitting two jumpers and feeding Vasquez for a 3 to put Toronto up 75-68. He also played a big role in getting Wolves point guards Ricky Rubio and J.J. Barea in foul trouble with his aggressive penetration. "We needed all of his assists. He did a good job getting in there, penetrating, finding people," Casey said. We needed all his rebounds, especially with the way they crash the boards. He just had an all-around game." NOTES: Love made four 3-pointers, including one in the third quarter that broke Rashad McCants franchise record for 3s in a season. McCants made 142 3-pointers in 2007-08 to set the previous franchise record. ... The Raptors reserves outscored Minnesotas 32-16 for the game. ... Barea had another tough night, going 2 for 8 for five points. ... The Raptors recalled Dwight Buycks from the NBDLs Bakersfield Jam on Sunday. ' ' '