LOS ANGELES (UPDATE) - Dirk Nowitzki scored 24 points to lead Dallas to a 93-81 victory over the Los Angeles Lakers on Wednesday, handing the Mavericks a 2-0 lead over the NBA champions in their Western Conference second-round series.
Shawn Marion added 14 points and Jason Kidd scored 10 for the Mavericks, who delivered a solid defensive performance and got another strong shooting night from Nowitzki.
The victory puts the Mavericks in the driving seat against the two-time defending champions Lakers.
Only three NBA teams have come back to win a best-of-seven series after dropping the first two games at home, and the Lakers will have their work cut out when the Mavericks host game three on Friday and game four on Sunday.
"It's a challenge, that's for sure," Lakers coach Phil Jackson said.
Kobe Bryant scored 23 points for the Lakers, who had not lost the first two games of a post-season series since the 2008 NBA finals. That also marked their last playoff series defeat.
The Mavericks held the advantage for much of the game and pulled away with a late 9-0 scoring run.
J.J. Barea was key in the burst, which included a shot straight over Andrew Bynum. Barea finished with 12 points and four assists.
Even Bryant, famous for his late-game heroics, could not find an answer. He was scoreless in the fourth quarter until he hit two free throws with less than four minutes to play.
Bynum had 18 points and 13 rebounds for Los Angeles. Pau Gasol had 13 points and 10 rebounds, but the Lakers failed to gain control of the contest.
The Lakers were woeful from three-point range. They finished 2-for-20 from beyond the arc and didn't make a three-pointer until Bryant drained one with 2:43 remaining.
Ron Artest made another, shortly before he was ejected with 24.4 seconds left for throwing an arm at Barea.
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