Dallas at Minnesota

Hats off to Dallas Mavericks coach Rick Carlisle, who made some key adjustments to keep this team in the playoff race. Dallas has won three in a row focusing on defense. Dallas allowed an average of 123.3 points during a three-game slide before turning things around completely and yielding 88.7 points in three consecutive wins after a 98-89 win in Detroit on Friday. The Mavs have vaulted over the Houston Rockets and back into the top eight in the Western Conference. The offense is being taken care of by guard J.J. Barea, who had 29 points against the Pistons and is averaging 24.3 in the last three games. They face a Minnesota defense that is terrible, #28 in field goal shooting allowed and #24 in points allowed. The Timberwolves are on a 14-31-1 ATS run at home and is 16-36-1 ATS at home against a team with a losing road record. Dallas has taken six straight in the series, including a 93-87 triumph in Minnesota on January 10, part of a stretch where the road team is 35-16 ATS when they face each other. Play Dallas.