NBA: Los Angeles Lakers hold on to defeat Dallas Mavericks

Andrew Bynum had a huge smile on his face after he grabbed a rebound of his own miss and got fouled on an attempted putback.

Not long after making both those free throws that put the Los Angeles Lakers ahead, Bynum was running after teammate Derek Fisher to give him a big hug following a 3-pointer.

Bynum had 19 points and 14 rebounds, including several big plays in the final 51/2 minutes, as the Lakers hit the halfway point of their season with a 96-91 victory over the defending NBA champion Mavericks on Wednesday night in Dallas.

"Andrew was great," coach Mike Brown said.

The free throws by Bynum broke an 82-all tie with 5:29 left and put the Lakers (20-13) ahead to stay after 13 ties and 10 lead changes.

Pau Gasol had 24 points for the Lakers, and Kobe Bryant and Fisher each had 15.

Dirk Nowitzki had 25 points and 12 rebounds to lead the Mavericks (21-13), who played their final game before the All-Star break.

 The Mavericks' Lamar Odom did not play against his former team after he was excused from the game to attend to a family matter.

Thunder 119, Celtics 104: Russell Westbrook scored 31 points, Kevin Durant added 28, and Oklahoma

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City withstood a late Boston rally before beating the Celtics for the 11th straight win at home.

It was the fifth straight loss for Boston, which hits the All-Star break a disappointing 14-16.

"We've got to come together as a group and understand we still have a shot at this," said Paul Pierce, who tied Kevin Garnett for the team lead with 23 points.

Clippers 103, Nuggets 95: Chris Paul scored a season-high 36 points, Blake Griffin added 27, and host Los Angeles beat Denver to snap a two-game skid in its last game before the All-Star break.