The absence of Dirk Nowitzki meant it was time for other Mavericks to step up.

Chief among those is the team's other All-Star forward. Josh Howard took the challenge, as he's done with many throughout his career, Tuesday night at ARCO Arena.

Howard, not 100 percent either, scored a game-high 29 points as the Mavs (62-12) held off Sacramento 97-93 to "bounce back" from Sunday's 22-point setback at Phoenix.

Just a menace everywhere. His defense wasn't jawdropping this night, but his tenacity was. His offense... he could easily be the #1 guy on an NBA team, no question. Maybe not a 65-win team, like these Mavs, but a decent to good team. His jumper is smooth, his slashing ability is high in the all-NBA rankings, and his passing is much better than I expected.

These Mavericks sort of look like Josh Howard - they're vultures, hovering and waiting to attack. Always brooding, nearly faceless, just pounding and hitting and running and pounding. I'd be afraid to go seven games with them, afraid of all the bruises and shiners I'd have. That's a tough team, even without Dirk.

"We do not want to make a steady diet of that," Josh Howard said of playing without Nowitzki. "He's our leader. That's 25 points gone. You got to find them somewhere.

"But we got guys who like that sort of challenge. And after every game we lose, we try to treat the next one as one we definitely want to win."