Dallas Mavericks

Dirk Nowitzki's back problem appears to be behind him.

Nowitzki showed no sign of a lower back strain Saturday night, scoring 30 points in the Dallas Mavericks' 109-103 victory over the New Orleans Hornets.

Jason Terry added a season-high 26, including eight in the final 4:22 when the Mavericks held off a New Orleans rally.

Nowitzki was coming off a 23-point, 16-rebound effort Friday night against Charlotte. He was just 9-of-22 from the field in that one, but hit half his 18 shots against New Orleans including 5-of-9 from 3-point range.

"We just need to get him some rest now," Dallas coach Avery Johnson said. "He hit big shots when we needed it. I thought there were some shots where he could have taken the ball to the basket, but it's a work in progress."

Terry provided a nice complement to Nowitzki. His driving basket with 31.8 seconds remaining made it 104-96. After a three-point play by Chris Paul got the Hornets within five, Nowitzki sank two free throws for a 106-99 lead and Terry added two more a bit later as the Mavs held on.

"We have a lot of offensive weapons on this team, from the starting lineup to the bench," Terry said. "They played a lot of zone against us. We found the holes and I was able to hit some shots."