Mavs Roll Past Nuggets

February 25, 1999 / 11:26 PM EST / AP

Dallas won the game, but lost Cedric Ceballos for as long as six weeks with a fractured right wrist.

It was worse for Denver. The Nuggets, beaten 90-81 by the Mavericks on Thursday night, lost rookie Raef LaFrentz for the season with a torn ligament in his left knee.

"Anytime someone is playing as well as he was and goes down for the year, it's tough," Nuggets coach Mike D'Antoni said. "But we can't feel sorry for ourselves. We have to have a couple of guys step up."

The 6-foot-11 LaFrentz was driving to the basket in the first quarter when his knee buckled. The first-round draft pick from Kansas was averaging 14.9 points in his first 11 games.

Ceballos, the Mavs' No. 2 scorer, hurt the wrist when he was knocked to the floor on a layup attempt in the first quarter. But he stayed in the game and finished with 20 points. Michael Finley also had 20 points for the Mavs.

"Cedric had a gutsy performance," Mavs coach Don Nelson said. "He couldn't do much with his right hand."

Gary Trent scored eight of his 18 points during a 15-4 fourth-quarter run as the Mavericks won for the third time in their last four games after a 1-8 start.

Trent credited the victory to Dallas' defense after the Nuggets converted only 9-of-26 field goal attempts in the fourth quarter.

"That's how you win games, with defense," Trent said. "Then down the stretch we came up with a couple of key baskets."

Dallas won despite shooting only 38.8 percent (31-for-80) from the field.

"To win shooting 38 percent is remarkable," Nelson said. "But defensively we were very good."

Nick Van Exel had 16 points and Danny Fortson had 15 points and a career-high 24 rebounds for the Nuggets, who were coming off big wins over Utah and the Los Angeles Lakers. Denver was looking for its first three-game winning streak since December 1996.

Chauncey Billups had 14 points and Antonio McDyess 13 points and 10 rebounds for the Nuggets.

Denver led 75-73 with 6:20 to play when Finley got Dallas' decisive run under way, sending the Mavs ahead for good, at 76-75, with a 3-pointer.

Finley added a layup, and Denver's Cory Alexander hit a 15-footer to reduce Dallas' lead to 78-77.

Trent then converted a three-point play and added a free throw on Dallas' next possession to boost Dallas' lead to 82-77. Trent finished the run with consecutive baskets for an 88-77 advantage.

The Mavericks took a 67-62 lead into the fourth quarter.

Notes: Nuggets forward Loren Meyer created a stir when he knocked Ceballos to the floor after Ceballos soared to the basket on a layup attempt late in the first quarter. Meyer was assessed a flagrant foul while Finley received a technical foul when he had harsh words for Meyer, a former Maverick.