Brook Lopez couldn't be stopped down low and Deron Williams stepped up in the second half, as the Brooklyn Nets downed the Dallas Mavericks, 113-96, at American Airlines Center.

Lopez scored a season-high 38 points and pulled down 11 rebounds, and Williams scored 26 of his 31 points after the break in helping the Nets improve to 2-0 on their eight-game road trip.

Brooklyn won the battle on the glass by a 45-34 margin thanks in large part to Reggie Evans cleaning up 22 boards in a winning effort.

Dirk Nowitzki and Chris Kaman led Dallas with 16 and 14 points, respectively, as the Mavs opened their six-game homestand on a sour note.

"Our defense wasn't good enough," Nowitzki said.

Lopez and Williams combined to outscore the Mavs, 27-26, in the third quarter by themselves, and the Nets took an 85-77 lead into the fourth.

Quiet for most of the night, Joe Johnson drained a critical 3-pointer to extended Brooklyn's lead to 106-96 with under three minutes remaining, and Williams connected from long range the next time down to essentially seal the win.

"I'm not saying that's as good as we can play, but that's one of our best games obviously all year," Nets coach P.J. Carlesimo said. "It's a hell of a win for us."

Lopez scored 15 points in the first quarter alone, but the Mavs' balanced attack had them in front, 32-22, heading to the second.

Brooklyn quickly pulled even as Andray Blatche and Keith Bogans combined for 12 points during a 14-4 run to open the second quarter, and it remained tied going into halftime, 51-51.

Game Notes