TORONTO (AP) -- The Dallas Mavericks felt fortunate to get the

victory.

Dirk Nowitzki had 38 points and Josh Howard made a go-ahead

layup with 0.9 seconds left to rally the Mavericks past the Toronto

Raptors 97-96 on Sunday.

Toronto's Morris Peterson was told not to switch off Howard and

cover Nowitzki during a timeout before the decisive play. But

Peterson did, allowing Howard to make a wide-open layup to give

Dallas the lead. Toronto's Anthony Parker missed a 3-pointer at the

buzzer.

"We really didn't show up until the second quarter and then we

were in a dog fight," Nowitzki said. "Obviously, we got a little

lucky. They both went with me and Josh was open and made a hell of

a finish."

Nowitzki had 11 rebounds, five assists, three blocks and two

steals for the Mavericks, winners of 17 of their last 18 games.

Chris Bosh had 24 points and 15 rebounds, but his turnover after

winning a jump ball set up the Mavericks' last play with 6.5

seconds left. After the Mavericks inbounded the ball, Peterson

converged on Nowitzki, allowing Howard to stand under the basket

uncovered to receive Jason Terry's pass.

"I found Josh wide open. He made like a receiver and it was a

great play," Terry said. "Toronto could have easily won that

game."

Toronto led nearly the entire game, with Dallas briefly taking

the lead with just over two minutes left and for good on Howard's

layup.

Peterson called it a tough loss.

"We wanted this game bad. To come up short is definitely

disappointing," Peterson said. "The lesson we can take out of

this game is that we can play with anybody. We took a team like

Dallas down to the wire."

The Raptors led by as many as 16, but Nowitzki scored eight

straight points to start the fourth to cut the lead to three.

Bosh attempted just one shot in the fourth compared to five for

backup point guard Jose Calderon. Bosh played only 5:48 minutes in

the final quarter.

Toronto led by 11 at halftime and lost despite shooting 48.6

percent from the field.

T.J. Ford had 16 points and eight assists.

"It's tough to swallow this one, losing on a layup," Ford

said. "We had the game won and let it slip out of our hands."

Andrea Bargnani, the No. 1 pick in the draft, had 12 points,

including two 3-pointers. The 7-foot Italian has often been

compared to Nowitzki because of his size and outside shot.

"He's a better player than when I was 19 or 20," Nowitzki said

of the 21-year-old Bargnani. "He's going to be a heck of a player.

He's a little more athletic than I even was back then. He can drive

a little better than me."

Game notes

Peterson, Toronto's franchise leader in games, played his

500th game. ... Blue Jays catcher Gregg Zaun sat courtside. ...

Nowitzki had a season-high 43 points in Friday's victory over

Indiana.