[MavsFanFinley]

DENVER (AP) -- Defensive specialist Greg Buckner scored a career-high 28 points and Carmelo Anthony had 21, giving the Denver Nuggets a 110-82 victory over the Dallas Mavericks Sunday night.

Dallas got Erick Dampier and Jason Terry back from injuries, but lost leading scorer and rebounder Dirk Nowitzki to a sprained left ankle.

The All-Star forward was injured late in the second quarter when he stepped on the foot of Denver forward Nene. Nowitzki lie in front of the Mavericks' bench for several minutes and couldn't put any weight on his foot as he was helped to the locker room.

Kenyon Martin had 19 points and 10 rebounds, Anthony added six rebounds and six assists and the Nuggets (5-5) had 35 assists on 41 field goals to reach .500 after a 1-4 start.

But the difference-maker was Buckner.

The defensive-minded guard had stuck to his role early in the season, providing solid on-the-ball defense and steady decision-making. He changed his tune against the Mavericks, going 10-for-13 with nine rebounds after managing just 37 points on 11-for-28 shooting through Denver's first nine games.

Devin Harris had 15 points and Jerry Stackhouse 14 for Dallas, which lost for just the third time in 11 games.

The Mavericks got off to a good start, working the ball inside and getting out on the break for easy shots to lead by as much as many as 16 points in the first quarter.

The Nuggets worked the ball for open shots, but couldn't seem to hit many in the early going. Denver was just 8-of-21 in the first quarter, leading to a round of boos from the home crowd in the closing seconds.

The Nuggets were even worse on defense, failing to get back on the break and giving the Mavericks plenty of room in the lane.

Denver got back into it in the second quarter by being more aggressive at both ends.

The Nuggets shut down the lane and challenged just about every shot in the quarter, holding the Mavericks to 6-of-26 shooting after they shot 56 percent in the first.

Denver also was more tenacious on offense, getting out on the break, going hard to the rim in the half court and scrapping for loose balls when they missed. The Nuggets made 11 of 21 shots in the quarter, outscoring Dallas 37-16 to turn a 15-point deficit into a 55-49 lead.

Buckner did most of the damage, scoring 14 points on backdoor cuts and jumpers, and even took time to shake hands with former coach Don Nelson while Martin was shooting a free throw at the other end.

Buckner kept it going in the third quarter, scoring on the break and on a backdoor cut to open the quarter and adding a 3-pointer and a three-point play late to put the Nuggets up 86-70.

Notes

Nuggets GM Kiki Vandeweghe said before the game that the team reviewed its security measures after the brawl in Detroit, but didn't make any changes. ... Dallas F Michael Finley made the trip to Denver, but hasn't been cleared to practice because of a sprained ankle.