DALLAS -- The glare of the national spotlight shined on the Dallas Mavericks on Wednesday night because the big man who broke up with them after a brief free-agency flirtation came to town.

This was on the heels of a blowout loss to the previously winless New Orleans Pelicans that several Mavs described as "embarrassing."

It would have been a disaster if DeAndre Jordan and the Los Angeles Clippers dominated the Mavs again, as was the case in the second game of the season. It would have deflated a Mavs fan base frustrated by four years without a playoff series win but pumped up for their new Public Enemy No. 1's visit.

Man, did Dallas ever need a feel-good performance. And the longtime face of the franchise and a new foundation piece for the foreseeable future -- Dirk Nowitzki and Wesley Matthews -- delivered with dominant nights.

"This was huge because we needed that marquee, signature win for ourselves to see it," Matthews said after the Mavs climbed to 4-4 in convincing fashion with a 118-108 win. "It's one thing to believe it. It's one thing to know that once everything starts going, shots start falling, blah, blah, blah, we'll be OK. But it's one thing to say it and another thing to do it. And we did it tonight."

Nowitzki, the old man whose hot start has been overshadowed by the Mavs' health issues, lit it up like he did on a regular basis before he needed around-the-clock maintenance just to get on the court. Nowitzki scored 31 points on 11-of-14 shooting and grabbed 11 rebounds, outplaying 26-year-old perennial All-Star power forward Blake Griffin.

Matthews, the high-priced free agent who stuck to his commitment to sign with the Mavs this summer, had by far his best outing of the young season.

That's especially impressive for Matthews, who is eight months removed from tearing his left Achilles tendon and had to talk his way onto the court on the second night of a back-to-back. The Mavs' medical and coaching staff made Matthews sit the second night of the season against the Clippers despite a heated, R-rated argument from him.

There can be no doubt now about Matthews' ability to bring it on the butt end of a back-to-back. He set new season high in points (25 on 9-of-13 shooting, primarily on post-ups and 3-pointers), rebounds (six) and assists (three). Oh, and he also harassed Chris Paul all over the court, a major factor in the perennial All-Star point guard's 2-of-11 shooting troubles.

"What can you say about Matthews? He's a horse," Mavs coach Rick Carlisle said. "He's got an iron will just like Dirk."

As sweet as it might be for Mavs fans to see another epic night for Nowitzki, particularly in a game that elicited so much emotion, a strong case can be made that Matthews' performance was more important.

Nowitzki continues to win his fair share of rounds in his fight with Father Time, but the Mavs have been trying since their 2011 title run to ease the burden on the big German. And at some point, perhaps at the end of next season, Nowitzki will ride off into the sunset.

That means the Mavs' high-priced additions better pay off big. That puts a lot of pressure on Matthews, particularly as Chandler Parsons continues his slow, gradual process of working his way back from hybrid microfracture surgery, which prompted the Mavs to sit Parsons against the Clippers.

Matthews doesn't shy away from that responsibility. He embraces it. He sent Nowitzki a text message after Tuesday's nightmare in New Orleans, saying he was disgusted with Dallas' effort and that they needed to set a tone.

Then Matthews backed it up with the kind of game the Mavs hoped to get when they gave him a max contract -- and didn't expect to be possible until December at the earliest.

"He was fantastic, basically picking CP up full court, trying to force him into tough shots, being physical with him, fighting through screens," Nowitzki said. "And on the offensive end, he was on fire."

Nowitzki and Matthews had a lot of help, most notably from center Zaza Pachulia, who was acquired in a desperation move as a salary dump from the Milwaukee Bucks after the DeAndre debacle. Pachulia had 10 points, 10 rebounds and perhaps fittingly put the Mavs up for good with a pair of clutch free throws.

The Mavs got a few good breaks, too, such as Nowitzki inadvertently banking in a dagger 3 with 65 seconds remaining.

"I think the basketball gods were on our side a little bit," Carlisle said.

Maybe it was karma. The Mavs will take it. They really needed a night like this.