CITY » down midway through the fourth quarter, Carr elude

BOSTON -- The Celtics dont want to rely solely on Isaiah Thomas to win.But on some nights, putting the ball in the All-Star guards hands is simply the best option.Thomas scored 22 of his 30 points in the fourth quarter in Bostons 90-83 victory over the Dallas Mavericks on Wednesday night.He scored 20 of Bostons final 24 points to help the Celtics beat back a late Mavericks surge.Avery Bradley added 18 points and 13 rebounds.After the Mavericks took a 70-66 lead, Thomas scored Bostons next 13 points to put the Celtics back in front 79-76. They never trailed again.After one of the baskets late in the run Thomas ran down the court and flashed two thumbs up.I guess I just like that quarter, Thomas said. Sometimes guys get a little tighter, and then the pressure gets a little tougher for them. I guess I like the pressure.Harrison Barnes led the Mavericks with 28 points. Wesley Matthews added 22.Dallas, which was already missing several players because of injuries, lost two more. Starter Deron Williams exited in the second quarter with a left calf injury, and J.J. Barea was helped off the court in the fourth quarter after straining his left calf as well.Coach Rick Carlisle said it appears Barea will be out for a while, but added that he didnt think it was real serious. He said its his understanding that Williams just experienced some tightness.The Celtics outrebounded Dallas 53-32, which coach Brad Stevens said is a welcomed sign for a team that struggled in that department early in the season.Maybe its the law of averages, and some just bounced our way, Stevens said. But were defending at a better rate than we were.TIP-INSMavericks: Have lost three straight. ... Had a season-low 31 points at the first half. ... Dirk Nowitzki missed his fifth straight game with a right Achilles strain.Celtics: Thomas has scored 20 or more points in each of the first 11 games of the season. ... Scored a season-low 90 points. ...Tied their season high with 19 turnovers. ... Bostons 10-point second quarter was its lowest scoring output in a second quarter this season. ... Al Horford remains in the NBA concussion protocol and sat out his eighth straight game. Jae Crowder missed his seventh consecutive game with a sprained left ankle.TEAM MEETINGCeltics guard Marcus Smart said the team held a meeting after its blowout loss to the Wizards on Nov. 9 to help refocus its commitment on the defensive end.It was no coaches, just us, Smart said. We had to look ourselves in the mirror and come to the conclusion that it is on us and were the ones playing and that we have to get it together.Bradley said the conversation was frank and honest.Just that we need to hold each other accountable, he said. We werent playing to our ability. We had two or three guys playing hard at the defensive end, but the other three guys werent. And we needed everyone playing hard consistently as a team. Tonight I feel like was one our best defensive games.NO FREEBIESThere werent many trips to the free throw line in the first half for either team. The Celtics were just 2 for 6 in the half, and the Mavericks missed their lone attempt in the first quarter. Neither team attempted a free throw in the second quarter.INJURY UPDATEStevens said Crowder would practice Friday, but that he does not expect him to play Saturday against Golden State. Stevens said his last report on Horford was that the big man had a great workout on Wednesday.Carlisle said Dirk Nowitzki is making progress as well.It feel likes hes getting close, he said.UP NEXTMavericks: Return home Friday to host the Grizzlies, before heading back on the road for trips to Orlando and San Antonio.Celtics: Host the Warriors Friday, and then begin a three-game trip with a stop in Detroit on Saturday.---Follow Kyle Hightower on Twitter at http://www.twitter.com/khightower Cheap Falcons Jerseys . This should be celebrated because it will not always be this way. With the amount of money given to players by their clubs these days, it is a wonder that so many of those teams allow the sport to continue to take away many of their assets so they can play for a different team in the middle of their season. Cheap Atlanta Falcons Jerseys . "It was nerve-wracking, but we pulled through," said Collaros, who threw four touchdown passes to lead the Toronto Argonauts (8-4) to a 33-27 win over the Calgary Stampeders (9-3) in front of 28,781 fans at McMahon Stadium. http://www.cheapfalconsjerseyselite.com/ .J. -- Marty Brodeur beat the Pittsburgh Penguins yet again. Cheap Falcons Jerseys China . The Vikings announced Thursday that Priefer will be one of seven holdovers from the previous staff, along with offensive line coach Jeff Davidson, wide receivers coach George Stewart and others. Norv Turner will mark his 30th year of coaching in the NFL as the offensive co-ordinator, as widely reported for weeks, and George Edwards will be the defensive co-ordinator. Cheap Falcons Jerseys Authentic . LOUIS -- Valtteri Filppula assisted on three of Tampa Bays four goals, and the Lightning beat the St. ALAMEDA, Calif. -- After playing perhaps his worst game as a pro on the biggest stage hes had in three seasons in the NFL, Oakland Raiders quarterback Derek Carr wanted to get back on the field the day after his loss in Kansas City.Instead, Carr will have to wait 10 days for another shot when Oakland (10-3) visits San Diego (5-8) on Sunday.Despite that loss, the Raiders can clinch a playoff spot with a win against the Chargers and end a 13-year postseason drought. That would complete a remarkable turnaround for a team that started Carrs rookie season in 2014 with 10 straight losses.Starting 0-10 was not fun, Carr said Wednesday. It makes these moments so awesome. It makes these moments really to already have 10 wins. I know for our team our sole focus is beating the Chargers because if we dont, were still hoping and wishing.Oaklands 21-13 loss to Kansas City (10-3) last week cost the Raiders control of the AFC West with the Chiefs holding the tiebreaker by virtue of sweeping the season series.Oakland can still win the division by posting a better record than Kansas City over the final three games or get in as a wild-card team with another win.But the main focus will be fixing an offense that struggled to move the ball in the air in frigid Kansas City against the Chiefs. Carr went 17 for 41 for 117 yards, posting a career-low 49.1 rating. Carr had his second-lowest completion percentage in a game and set a worst with 2.85 yards per attempt.It was just execution, it was literally inches, Carr said. There were a whole bunch of plays I think about that we always hit that for whatever reason, sometimes it was good feet and the route was good and we just missed by an inch. Sometimes that happens in practice and you never want it to happen in games.It hadnt happened in games much at all this season for Carr and the Raiders, who have uused their high-powered passing game to become one of the top teams in the league.ddddddddddddDespite the rough day against the Chiefs, Carr still has thrown for 3,492 yards, 24 touchdowns and only five interceptions for a 96 passer rating and taken only 13 sacks.Amari Cooper has already topped 1,000 yards receiving and Michael Crabtree could join him with 194 yards in the final three games, giving Oakland its first pair of 1,000-yard receivers since Hall of Famers Jerry Rice and Tim Brown did it in 2001.But Carr struggled to get the ball to either Cooper or Crabtree last week as they combined for 50 yards receiving on 17 targets. One pass in particular, still haunts Oakland.On a third down midway through the fourth quarter, Carr eluded pressure and launched a deep ball to an open Cooper, who got behind the defense and appeared ready to score a touchdown.But at the last minute the ball mysteriously changed directions and fell incomplete as Cooper was unable to adjust. The Raiders still dont know what happened with some speculation that it hit a camera wire, despite denials from NBC.You cant really tell because you cant see the ball the whole way through, Cooper said. It definitely moved, but you cant really tell what actually happened to it.Game notes DL Mario Edwards Jr. participated in his most extensive practice since injuring his hip in the preseason opener but no decision has been made whether to activate him from IR this week. I dont really know yet, he said. Just kind of see how the week goes. ... S Karl Joseph (toe) did not practice, but DT Darius Latham (ankle) and OL Kelechi Osemele (kidney stones) returned.---For more NFL coverage: http://www.pro32.ap.org and http://www.twitter.com/AP-NFL ' ' '