The league-best Boston Celtics look for their third impressive win in four nights when they face Dallas Mavericks,and both teams will be trying to pick up a win when they battle at American Airlines Center this Thursday.

Game: Boston Celtics (54-13) at Dallas Mavericks (44-24)
Date/Time: Thursday, March 20 - 8:00 PM EST
Spread: Dallas -2.5 Total: 189
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Boston (54-13) began its current five-game road trip with a 99-77 win Saturday in Milwaukee, then fell behind by as many as 22 points Monday in San Antonio before rallying to beat the Spurs 93-91.

The Celtics carried that momentum over the next night, dominating Houston 94-74 and ending the Rockets' 22-game winning streak, the second-longest in NBA history, as 4.5-point underdogs. The 168 points fell UNDER the posted total of 180.

Kevin Garnett had 22 points and 11 rebounds for a double-double, while Leon Powe added 21 in the victory.

The Mavericks come in having won five of their last six, but they've been feasting on some of the NBA's worst teams. Since acquiring Jason Kidd on Feb. 19, the Mavs have yet to beat a team with a winning record.

Dallas made it 0-for-6 against above-.500 teams since Kidd's arrival in its latest game. The Mavericks fell behind by as many as 25 points against the Los Angeles Lakers on Tuesday before rallying in the fourth quarter, ultimately losing 102-100 when Dirk Nowitzki's 3-pointer missed at the buzzer. The 202 points fell UNDER the posted total of 210.

Dirk Nowitzki scored a game-high 35 points and hauled down 11 boards to complete the double-double in the loss. Dirk stepped up his game with Kidd in the lineup, averaging 27.6 points since Feb. 20.

Kidd hasn't been quite what Dallas was hoping for. He's averaging just 5.6 points in his last seven games - he's scoring 10.8 on the season - and his assist totals have dropped as well.

Basketball Oddsmakers currently have the Mavericks listed as 2½-point favorites versus the Celtics, while the game's total is sitting at 189.

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Current streak:
Boston has won 3 straight games.

Team records:
Boston: 54-13 SU, 41-24-2 ATS
Dallas: 44-24 SU, 30-34-4 ATS

Boston most recently:
When playing on Thursday are 2-8
Before playing New Orleans are 4-6
After playing Houston are 7-3
After a win are 9-1

Dallas most recently:
When playing on Thursday are 6-4
Before playing San Antonio are 7-3
After playing LA Lakers are 8-2
After a loss are 5-5

A few trends to consider:
Boston is 5-0 SU in its last 5 games on the road
Boston is 5-0 ATS in its last 5 games on the road
Boston is 13-1 SU in its last 14 games
Boston is 8-1 ATS in its last 9 games
Dallas is 5-0 SU in its last 5 games when playing at home against Boston
Dallas is 16-2 SU in its last 18 games at home
Dallas is 7-1 SU in its last 8 games when playing Boston
Dallas is 5-1 SU in its last 6 games

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