By The Associated Press

BOSTON – Dirk Nowitzki had 36 points and Keith Van Horn added 21 points off the bench to lead the Dallas Mavericks to a 112-100 victory over Boston on Wednesday night, sending the Celtics to their season high-tying fourth straight loss.

The Mavericks won for the ninth time in 11 games and continued to excel on the road, improving the NBA’s third-best road record to 24-11.

Since winning 11 of 12 after acquiring Antoine Walker, Boston has slumped, and Walker has shot 33 percent during the four-game slide.

After Ricky Davis cut the Mavericks’ lead to 77-76 with 11:15 left, Van Horn, Josh Howard and Jerry Stackhouse combined to score 17 points in a 22-6 run giving Dallas its biggest lead of the game, 99-82. The Celtics pulled to within 101-92 with 2:12 remaining on a runner by Walker, but Nowitzki converted two three-point plays in the next minute to put the game out of reach. Paul Pierce led the Celtics with 21 points. Ricky Davis added 18. With Dallas leading 63-57 halfway through the third quarter, the Celtics responded with a 9-0 run capped by Walker’s layup.

Nowitzki lifted the Mavericks to a 46-43 halftime lead with 12 second-quarter points, going 10-of-11 from the free throw line. The Celtics shot 19 percent on 5-of-26 shooting in the first quarter, while Dallas missed 11 of its final 13 shots.

Van Horn has shot 31-of-54 from the field in the last four games. Dallas shot 65 percent in the second half after shooting 37 percent in the first half.

Magic 108, Raptors 96

ORLANDO, Fla. – The Orlando Magic took another step toward reviving their playoff hopes with a 108-96 victory over the Toronto Raptors.

Grant Hill scored 21 points and rookie Dwight Howard contributed 18 points and nine rebounds.

Nets 95, Clippers 78

EAST RUTHERFORD, N.J. – Vince Carter scored 31 points and Jason Kidd had eight points and 13 assists as the New Jersey Nets kept their playoff hopes alive with a 95-78 win over the Los Angeles Clippers.

Nenad Krstic added 17 points on 7-of-9 shooting, Brian Scalabrine added 12 as the Nets won for the seventh time in nine games.

Wizards 102, Hawks 99

WASHINGTON – Gilbert Arenas scored nine of his 36 points in the final 3 minutes, including the go-ahead basket on a driving layup in traffic with 34 seconds to play, leading the Washington Wizards to a 102-99 victory over the Atlanta Hawks.

Bulls 102, Bobcats 99

CHARLOTTE, N.C. -Ben Gordon showed Emeka Okafor why the Rookie of the Year award is still up for grabs, scoring 22 of his career-high 35 points in the fourth quarter to lead the Chicago Bulls to a 102-99 victory over the Charlotte Bobcats.

Pistons 99, Kings 82

AUBURN HILLS, Mich. – Richard Hamilton scored 24 points and Ben Wallace added 19 points and 14 rebounds as the Detroit Pistons beat the Sacramento Kings 99-82.

Detroit, which had lost four of its last five games, was coached by assistant Gar Heard for the 10th straight game as Larry Brown recovers from urinary-tract surgery. Brown is expected to be back for Friday’s game against the Clippers.

Rasheed Wallace added 14 points and 10 rebounds for Detroit, while Mike Bibby led the Kings with 26 points.

Detroit led 75-60 at the end of the third, outscoring the Kings 29-18 in the period.

Sacramento never got closer than eight in the fourth.

Notes: The Kings scored a season-low 11 points in the first quarter. … As part of a series of Throwback Nights, the Pistons wore their lightning-bolt jerseys from the late 1970s, while the Kings wore powder-blue uniforms from the 1980s. … Detroit’s back-up point guard, Carlos Arroyo, missed the game with the flu, so Tayshaun Prince and Lindsey Hunter were forced to play the point in the second half. … The Pistons are now 9-8 with Heard coaching, including a stint early in the season after Brown had hip surgery.

AP-ES-03-30-05 2222EST