NBA PLAYOFFS Mavericks on brink of elimination

The Spurs have won three straight to take a 3-1 series lead.
SAN ANTONIO (AP) -- Even though small ball didn't work in Dallas, Don Nelson is going back to it in Game 5 against San Antonio.
The Mavericks coach really doesn't have a choice.
"Everybody's talking about how clever I am. You guys would come up with the same game plan if you only had two big guys and one of them was [6-foot-8]," Nelson said Monday.
The only thing that would make the Mavericks bigger would be the return of Dirk Nowitzki, who said it would take a drastic improvement in his sprained left knee for him to be on the court.
"I don't really have pain," Nowitzki said. "It doesn't really hurt, but I can feel that something is not right with my knee. If I have that again tomorrow, I'm not going to play."
Looking ahead
The Spurs did not practice Monday, getting a head start on the rest that will await them if they finish off the Mavericks in five games.
The NBA Finals begin June 4 at the home of the Western Conference champion, which means the Spurs won't have to sleep anywhere but in their own beds for the next week and a half if they take care of business tonight and avoid a trip back to Dallas for Game 6.
In order to advance, the Spurs will have to send the Mavericks to their first four-game losing streak in more than three years.
"I'm not ready to play golf yet. I'm just reading the tip magazines," Dallas guard Nick Van Exel said.
This is the Mavericks' second three-game skid of the postseason. The first came in the opening round against Portland, when Dallas nearly became the first NBA team to blow a 3-0 lead. The Mavericks recovered by winning Game 7. They also went seven games in the second round against Sacramento.
Getting tired
While Dallas is 2-0 in elimination games, the physical toll of 18 playoff games -- including 10 in 17 days as of tonight -- seems to be catching up.
"There were times last night when I felt a little fatigued," said Van Exel, who moved into the starting lineup to help replace Nowitzki's points. "There was maybe a loose rebound I wanted to get to, but I couldn't do it."
Nowitzki worked out before Game 4 in hopes of making it into the lineup just two days after being injured. But he wasn't able to run or jump, so he watched San Antonio's 102-95 victory from a seat near the Dallas bench.
For the first 21/2 quarters, Dallas' small lineup built a nine-point lead. Then San Antonio rallied and led the entire fourth quarter.