Mavericks 113, Spurs 111: Monta Ellis scored 12 of his 29 points in the fourth quarter as host Dallas finished strong to force a Game 7 against San Antonio in the Western Conference first-round series.

Dirk Nowitzki finished with 22 points and Vince Carter added 13 for the Mavericks, who will attempt to become the sixth No. 8 seed in NBA history to win a series against a No. 1 seed when the teams meet Sunday in San Antonio. DeJuan Blair, who was suspended for Game 5, had 10 points, 14 rebounds and four steals, including a big one in the final minute.

Tony Parker scored 13 of his 22 points in the fourth quarter to lead the Spurs, while Tiago Splitter tallied 19 points. Danny Green made all seven of his shots en route to 17 points and Tim Duncan chipped in 16 and nine rebounds for San Antonio, which lost in the first round as a No. 1 seed in 2011.

Dallas used a 14-2 run in the fourth quarter to take a 102-94 lead with under three minutes left before Boris Diaw hit a 3-pointer to spark an 11-4 Spurs push that got the visitors within a point in the final minute. After Carter made two free throws to make it 108-105, Blair intercepted a Parker pass underneath and hit one foul shot with 23.8 seconds left for a four-point advantage.

Blair and Shawn Marion each split two free throws in the next eight seconds and Green and Patty Mills hit late 3-pointers to cut the Mavericks' lead to 113-111 with 7.9 seconds remaining. Ellis threw the ball away with 1.3 ticks remaining but Patty Mills' potential game- and series-winning 3-pointer was late and short.

GAME NOTEBOOK: Dallas led by as many as 11 points in the second quarter before settling for a 58-52 halftime lead. ... San Antonio G Manu Ginobili, the team's leading scorer (19.6) in the series entering the game, was held to six points on 1-of-8 shooting. ... The Mavericks survived despite shooting 15-of-24 at the line, compared with 24-of-28 for the Spurs.