Mavericks 103, Trail Blazers 98: Dirk Nowitzki scored 22 points and Jose Calderon added 19 as Dallas survived a wild affair with visiting Portland.

Monta Ellis collected 17 points, eight rebounds, seven assists and three steals for the Mavericks, who nearly matched a franchise record by squandering a 30-point lead. Devin Harris made the go-ahead basket and finished with 12 points off the bench as Dallas snapped a three-game slide.

LaMarcus Aldridge piled up 30 points and 17 rebounds as the Blazers fell just short. Wesley Matthews scored 26 points but Portland went the final 4:25 without scoring to drop the opener of a five-game trip.

The Trail Blazers held an 89-82 lead with 8:36 left in the game before an 8-0 run put the Mavericks back on top, but Aldridge scored twice during a 9-2 surge in response as Portland fought back. Dallas ripped off six straight points to knot it back up at 98 and Harris converted a three-point play with 24.2 seconds remaining to put the Mavericks back on top before Vince Carter sealed it at the line.

Dallas set a blistering pace at the beginning and opened up a 33-10 lead at the end of the first quarter before spreading it as wide as 30 points less than two minutes into the second. Portland recovered enough in the second quarter to cut it to 57-38 at the half but turned the tables in the third quarter, knotting it at 67 on Matthews’ 3-pointer with 4:01 left in the period and taking a brief lead before falling behind 75-74 entering the fourth.

GAME NOTEBOOK: Portland F Thomas Robinson (knee) returned from a four-game absence and collected 11 points and nine rebounds in 20 minutes before fouling out in the fourth quarter. … The 30-point comeback would have marked the largest in the NBA this season. … Ellis missed two free throws in the final seconds but Carter grabbed the offensive rebound before drawing the foul and hitting the clinching shots from the line.