" Doggone it, Richard Jefferson declined to woof, much less bite back at Spurs coach Gregg Popovich.

There's no doubt Jefferson was among the mongrels Popovich's had in mind when he declared after Game 1 that the Spurs "had a lot of guys play like dogs."

But rather than snarl or tuck his tail, Jefferson unleashed himself on the Mavericks, contributing 19 points and seven rebounds to San Antonio's 102-88 win Wednesday at American Airlines Center.

Along with the 1-1 series tie and loss of home-court advantage, the Mavericks have this upon which to chew between now and Game 3 Friday in San Antonio: The Spurs' Big Three of Tim Duncan, Manu Ginobili and Tony Parker may have a helper.

"He was the difference in the game," Duncan, who scored a team-high 25 points, said of Jefferson. "He was great in the first half, very aggressive."

Three days after scoring four points in Game 1, Jefferson scored a team-leading 17 of his points in the first half as the Spurs took a 58-46 lead.

Entering the series and after Game 1, much of the talk was how the Mavericks are more playoff-built after the Feb. 13 acquisition of Caron Butler, Brendan Haywood and DeShawn Stevenson.

And, comparatively, how inconsistent Jefferson has been this season, after San Antonio acquired him from Milwaukee in June. After Game 1, Spurs fans had to wonder if team's $14.2 million investment in Jefferson this season was a waste.

But on Wednesday, the Spurs were a plus-20 in point differential while Jefferson was on the court.

"Jefferson's a hell of a player," Mavericks coach Rick Carlisle said. "He's had big games over the years, including against us. Look, I'm not shocked. He's very capable."

In Wednesday's first half, he looked like the Jefferson of old, the one who teamed with Jason Kidd to help New Jersey to the 2002 and 2003 NBA Finals. Jefferson also was a 2004 Olympian. "