Nowitzki suspended for tonight's game vs. Houston
NATIONAL BASKETBALL ASSOCIATION

AWFUL TIMING - Utah Jazz forward Carlos Boozer (left) steals the ball from Dallas forward Dirk Nowitzki during the fourth quarter of a game played in Salt Lake City on Monday night. Dirk is being punished by the league tonight, suspended for a game for a hard foul on Utah's Andrei Kinlenko. He'll miss tonight's game against the red-hot Houston Rockets, who have won 16 straight games.

DALLAS (AP) - Dirk Nowitzki was suspended without pay for one game by the NBA on Wednesday for his hard foul on Utah's Andrei Kirilenko.

Nowitzki will miss the Dallas Mavericks' next game, and what horrible timing: the Mavs are at home tonight against divisional rival Houston, who have passed them in the tight Western Conference standings and the Southwest Division.

Nowitzki received a flagrant-1 when he hit Kirilenko midway through the first quarter of a 116-110 loss to Utah on Monday. However, the league reviewed the play and decided to upgrade it to a flagrant-2. Had it been ruled a flagrant-2 at the time he would've been ejected.

Kirilenko injured his right hip in the fall and stayed down for several minutes before getting up gingerly. He made both foul shots before being helped to the locker room. He was taken for X-rays, which showed no break.

The Mavericks are 39-22, four games back in the division.