MAVERICKS 90, ROCKETS 81: Dirk Nowitzki scored 21 points and the bench came up big as host Dallas pushed into a tie for fourth place in the Western Conference.

Rodrigue Beaubois led the reserves with 14 points and five assists and Jason Terry chipped in 12 points for the Mavericks, who have won back-to-back games against the Rockets and six of eight overall.

Houston had to fight for an overtime win against the Sacramento Kings on Monday and seemed to give into the fatigue against the Mavericks, who had not played since Saturday. The loss dropped the club back to ninth, one-half game behind the Denver Nuggets.

The Rockets burst out to a 30-19 lead after the first quarter but went cold from there as Dallas chipped away. Nowitzki scored 11 points and Beaubois added seven in the second quarter to cut it to 49-46 at the break.

The Mavericks took control in the third, holding Houston to 12 points on 5-for-19 shooting in the frame.

Terry’s 3-pointer with 9:49 left in the game pushed the lead to 76-63 and Dallas was able to coast to the finish.

Luis Scola collected 22 points and eight rebounds to lead the Rockets.

GAME NOTEBOOK: Houston PG Goran Dragic left Monday’s game with an ankle injury but played 38 minutes on Tuesday, recording 17 points and seven assists. … The Rockets shot 6 for 21 (28.6 percent) from beyond the arc. … The Mavericks now hit the road to face Miami and Orlando.