SALT LAKE CITY – The Dallas Mavericks finished their run of road games against the Western Conference divisional leaders Monday night.

They led in the fourth quarter against all three championship level opponents.

They lost all three games.

AP

Dallas Mavericks forward Dirk Nowitzki (left) takes down Utah's Andrei Kirilenko. Kirilenko went to the hospital, and Nowitzki heard boos from the crowd.

That's the bottom line for a team that could, and probably should, be emotionally gutted after Monday night's 116-110 defeat to the Utah Jazz.

But they are adamant that that's not the case.

"It's obviously a little frustrating losing all these games," said Dirk Nowitzki, who had 23 points and a flagrant foul that sent Utah's Andrei Kirilenko to the hospital.

"At home, we find ways to pull these games out. We get a big basket or a big stop. In the tight West, you hate losing these games. But maybe down the road it will help us learn to close out games. Maybe it's not all bad to go through this, but when you're losing these games, it's no fun."

The gut-wrenching losses have left the Mavericks in seventh place in the West but tied in the loss column with eighth-place Golden State. They are just three games up on Denver, which is out of the playoffs at the moment.

Yet their resolve remains steely, coach Avery Johnson said. The Mavericks are not getting beaten down psychologically by their heartbreak.

"Our team has a lot of intestinal fortitude," Johnson said. "They are not quitters. They could have packed it in early. But we found a way to get back in the game and take the lead.

"But we're not able to close out games, and historically we've been able to do that. We're just not there yet. But when we get there, the sky's the limit for this team.

"There's no 'beat you down' here. We're a positive team."

That vibe is being tested. This one may have hurt even more than the losses at San Antonio and the Los Angeles Lakers.

The Mavericks erased a 21-point first-half deficit behind big nights from Nowitzki, Josh Howard and Jason Terry but fell to pieces against a stiff Utah defense in the final minutes as the Jazz pulled away.

The Mavericks were up 92-89 with just over six minutes left, then gave up 16 points in a row to the Jazz, ending their chances. The Jazz, 26-3 at home, hasn't lost on its floor since Dec. 29.

The Mavericks fell to 4-4 since the trade for Jason Kidd. Utah got 20 assists and 17 points from The Colony product Deron Williams and 28 points from Carlos Boozer, who was big down the stretch as the Jazz buried the Mavericks.

At the end, the Mavericks took their first lead of the game at 90-89. A Kidd 20-footer made it a 3-point edge for the Mavericks, but Boozer scored four points, the beginning of a 16-0 Jazz run that closed things out.

"We're playing hard, but the other team's playing hard, too," Jerry Stackhouse said. "There's no secret to success. You just have to keep working and stay positive."

The last time the Mavericks were at EnergySolutions Arena, they were behind 16-0 before the first quarter was half done.

AP

Utah Jazz guard Ronnie Brewer (right) fouls Dallas Mavericks forward Jerry Stackhouse during the first quarter.

At least it was 2-2 for a brief spell Monday. But that didn't last long.

Utah went up 25-6 midway through the opening period and was up 52-34 before the Mavericks got their first two points in the paint on a Devean George hook shot. Utah had 22 points in the paint at that point.

The momentum swayed just minutes into the game when Nowitzki did his best Roy Williams imitation by putting a horse-collar on Kirilenko.

Nowitzki's takedown lit a fire under the Jazz and the fans, who unloaded their wrath on Nowitzki every time he touched the ball thereafter, booing him loudly.

Kirilenko went to the hospital after X-rays on his right hip at the arena were inconclusive. Kirilenko returned to the arena in the fourth quarter after further tests showed only a sprain.