DENVER (AP) _ George McCloud hit two 3-pointers in the final 46 seconds and Antonio McDyess had 27 points and 13 rebounds as the Denver Nuggets beat the Dallas Mavericks 98-96 Tuesday night.

McCloud scored 17 of his 19 points in the second half. Nick Van Exel added 17, Ron Mercer had 14 and Raef LaFrentz 11 for the Nuggets.

Michael Finley had 28 points and 10 assists and Gary Trent added 20 points for the Mavericks who lost their fourth straight. Dallas made all 16 of its free throws.

McCloud, who was 5-for-9 on 3-pointers, hit a 3-pointer with 46 seconds to go to put the Nuggets ahead 95-94. After Finley's layup, McCloud hit the game-winner with 8.8 seconds left.

The Nuggets took a 76-74 lead into the fourth quarter and neither team scored until a dunk by McDyess nearly three minutes into the period. Trent got the Mavericks first points of the final quarter with a finger roll layup and Dirk Nowitzki tied the game at 80 with two free throws.

The game was tied five times over the next four minutes, the last time at 92 on a dunk and free throw by McDyess with 1:17 left. Shawn Bradley's jump shot from the wing with 1:01 left put Dallas ahead 94-92 before McCloud's two 3-pointers.

Trailing 54-45 at halftime, Denver opened the third quarter with a 14-2 run, with seven points coming from McCloud to take a 59-56 lead. The Mavericks regained the lead, 60-59, on two free throws by Ceballos and a jumper by Finley.

Van Exel scored 11 points and the Nuggets shot 65 percent on 13-for-20 shooting in the first quarter but trailed 31-29. Finley and Nowitzki had eight points each in a period where the Mavericks hit 14 of 22 shots.

Notes: Finley played in his 329th straight game, third longest active streak. ... Dallas' Erick Strickland has drawn 18 offensive fouls in l7 games. ... Van Exel had his seventh consecutive double digit assist game. ... McDyess has 14 double-doubles.