Dirk sends Mavs to 2-0 lead

Dirk Nowitzki scored 24 points, Shawn Marion added 14 and the visiting Dallas Mavericks stunned the erratic Los Angeles Lakers 93-81 in Game 2 on Wednesday night, taking a 2-0 second-round lead over the two-time defending champions with consecutive road wins.

Jason Kidd scored 10 points for the Mavericks, who pushed the Lakers halfway to playoff elimination with Nowitzki's stellar shooting, another steady defensive performance, and a decisive 9-0 fourth-quarter rally.

Kobe Bryant scored 23 points for the Lakers, who hadn't lost the first two games of a playoff series since the 2008 NBA finals - also the last series they lost. Only three NBA teams have come back to win a best-of-seven series after losing the first two at home, where the Lakers sent them off with boos and jeers.

Game 3 is Friday night in Dallas.

The Lakers also could be short-handed in Dallas: Ron Artest was ejected with 24.4 seconds left for apparently clotheslining Dallas guard Jose Barea, possibly leading to a suspension.

After years of playoff underachievement during owner Mark Cuban's tenure, the Mavericks certainly appear primed to change their reputation.

Bulls 86, Hawks 73: Derrick Rose scored 25 points, Joakim Noah added 19 points and 14 rebounds, and host Chicago beat Atlanta in Game 2 of the Eastern Conference semifinals to tie the series.

The top-seeded Bulls shook off a dismal performance in the opener and looked more like the team with a league-leading 62 wins, building a 14-point lead and ending the game on a 9-2 run after the Hawks got within six.

Atlanta hosts Game 3 on Friday.

SEATTLE (AP) - C.J. Wilson struck out 12 in a six-hitter while Mitch Moreland and Chris Davis homered off Seattle rookie Michael Pineda as the Texas Rangers beat the Mariners 5-2 on Wednesday night.

Wilson (4-1) retired the final 14 batters in his fourth career complete game. The Rangers stopped their losing streak at three.

Pineda (4-2) didn't make many mistakes in seven strong innings, continuing a stellar start to his career. But he left a fastball over the middle of the plate on his first pitch of the fifth inning and Moreland hit a 410-foot shot to right-center field for his fourth home run.

Davis turned on an 0-2 fastball in the seventh for his first homer.

That was plenty for Wilson, who matched his high for strikeouts. He allowed one earned run and walked one.

After the Texas bullpen blew leads in each of the last two games, Wilson wasn't about to turn this one over to the Rangers relievers.

Wilson didn't allow a runner after Chone Figgins' single with one out in the fifth inning. He struck out Milton Bradley looking for the second out of the eighth, then got a weak grounder from Miguel Olivo to end the inning.

Even with relievers ready in the bullpen, Wilson returned for the ninth. Justin Smoak lined out, Jack Cust struck out and Jack Wilson grounded out.

Wilson threw 125 pitches in his first complete game since last September against Seattle.

Pineda, the AL rookie of the month for April, saw his run of five straight quality starts to begin his career end when Davis hit a 400-foot shot to nearly the same spot in the park as Moreland's homer two innings earlier.

Pineda matched his season high with nine strikeouts and was remarkable efficient, throwing first-pitch strikes to 22 of the 27 batters he faced. Of his 97 pitches, 77 were for strikes.

He allowed seven hits and walked none facing the Rangers for the second time this season.

Texas scored a pair in the first after the inning almost ended without any damage. With two outs, Adrian Beltre's drive into the right-field corner eluded Ichiro Suzuki, and it went for an RBI double when Elvis Andrus ran through a stop sign at third. David Murphy followed with a single to score Beltre.

The Rangers added to their lead in the eighth when reliever Chris Ray continued his season of inconsistency. Having not pitched since April 23, Ray walked Ian Kinsler to start the inning. Kinsler later scored when Ray's wild pitch skipped off Olivo's glove.

Ray has now allowed 11 earned runs in 7 1-3 innings of relief.

Seattle manufactured runs in the first and third innings, both times getting sacrifice flies from Olivo to score Figgins.