Portland Trailblazers beat Dallas Mavericks 114-113

On a night when Dirk Nowitzki turned back the clock for the Dallas Mavericks, C.J. McCollum had the final answer. McCollum scored 32 points, the last two on a runner from the top of the lane with 0.9 of a second left to give the Portland Trail Blazers a 114-113 win over the host Mavericks on Tuesday night. Nowitzki finished with 25 points, including two clutch three-pointers, the second putting Dallas ahead with 3.9 seconds left. Portland and Dallas — fighting for the eighth and final playoff spot in the Western Conference — battled through a tense fourth quarter that saw the teams trade 13-0 runs at one point, then exchange leads six times in the final minute. McCollum released his runner at the free-throw line and it swished through. Damian Lillard added 29 points for the Blazers, who tied their season series with the Mavericks at 2-2 — each team winning twice on the others' home floor. Nowitzki's three with 38.9 seconds left gave Dallas a 108-107 lead and prompted a fist pump from the 38-year-old, who was coming off four games of below double figures for only the second time since his rookie season. Ferrell, 23, who starred at Indiana but went undrafted,...