DALLAS -- Patty Mills scored 26 points starting in place of Tony Parker and the San Antonio Spurs moved to the brink of the top seed in the Western Conference with a 109-100 victory over the Dallas Mavericks on Thursday night.
Making his second start of the season and seventh of his career with Parker nursing a bad back, Mills had 11 points and a pair of steals in the third quarter when the Spurs turned a two-point deficit into an 11-point lead.
The Spurs beat the Mavericks for the ninth straight time in the regular season, a streak that has lasted more than two years.
Tim Duncan had 20 points and 15 rebounds after leaving briefly in the first quarter because of a hyperextended right knee. Kawhi Leonard added 16 points, a career-high 16 rebounds and five assists.
Monta Ellis led Dallas with 24 points and Dirk Nowitzki had 19.
The Spurs are just a win or an Oklahoma City loss away from securing the top seed in the West.
The Mavericks (48-32) are in a three-team scrum with Phoenix and Memphis -- their opponents in the final two games -- for the final two playoff spots a year after missing the postseason for the first time since 2000. Dallas is in a virtual tie with the Suns (47-31) and a game ahead of the Grizzlies (46-32).