DALLAS -- From the beginning of pre-season, leading up to tonight's game against the Detroit Pistons (5-9), the Mavericks (9-4) coaching staff, as well as premier players Dirk Nowitzki and Jason Terry, preached about the importance of protecting home court.

The Mavericks did just that throughout the first six minutes of the game, going on a 16-2 run in what appeared would be a blowout against a struggling Pistons team.  An electrified crowd at the American Airlines Center brought the arena to a deafening roar, feeding off a pair of three's by Dirk Nowitzki and Caron Butler and a monster dunk by Mavs' center Tyson Chandler. 

Then, the offense came to a screeching halt.  Detroit found its rhythm and took a 42-38 lead by halftime.

Nowitzki torched the net with 17 points on 70 percent shooting through two quarters but Dirk's impressive first half numbers were a major concern as he outscored the entire starting roster and Jason Terry combined. 

Jason Kidd had four points on 16 percent shooting and just two assists in the first half.  Not typical for the veteran point guard who's made a living off double-double's in recent years. 

The Mavericks could have easily let this home-game slip away being down by as many as 12 points in the third quarter but Nowitzki and Terry began to find a home for the pick-and-roll and were down just five after three quarters of play. 

"Dirk and Jason Terry were running that pick-and-roll and it was like pick your poison," Pistons guard Tracy McGrady said.  "When you get those guys going, they're a tough team to beat." 

The Mavs offense finally resurfaced in the fourth quarter with Nowitzki dropping 15 and Terry adding nine but it was Caron Butler's gritty defense that sparked the Mavericks comeback. 

"Caron got us started in the fourth quarter and then we went to the two-man game with myself and Dirk," Terry said.  "When you shoot 38 percent, and 30 percent from three and still win, that's a positive." 

The Mavs put up 32 points in the fourth quarter led by Nowitzki who had 15 points on 74 percent shooting and a perfect 8-for-8 from the free-throw line. 

Nowitkzi recorded another double-double with 42 points and 12 boards and shot a remarkable 50 percent from the floor. 

"Tremendous, tremendous performance," Terry said of Nowitzki's performance.  "I knew he had it going early on when he was getting to the free-throw line which set the tone and he then he didn't touch the rim after that.  It was phenomenal." 

As relieved as Dallas is to get a win at home against an average Pistons team, the Mavericks are in desperate need of offense by anyone whose last name isn't Nowitzki. 

Roriduge Beaubois continues to be out with a fractured left foot and may not return until December.  If that's the case, tough times may be ahead for the Mavericks if they don't find a cure for their offensive struggles. 

"We definitely need someone who can consistently get into the paint and make things easier," Nowitzki said.  Hopefully (Beaubois) will come back and open our offense up a little bit." 

The Mavericks face arguably its' toughest test of the season tomorrow night against a dangerous Oklahoma City Thunder (10-4) team that's full of high-flying scorers, led by Kevin Durant, whose making an early case for MVP. 

Dallas will need to find a remedy for its' inconsistent offense in less than 24 hours to leave Oklahoma City with a win.