Phoenix ? Dirk Nowitzki sank a 12-footer with 6.8 seconds remaining Wednesday night, giving the Dallas Mavericks a rugged 108-106 victory over the Phoenix Suns and squaring their best-of-seven Western Conference semifinal series 1-1.

Quentin Richardson’s three-point attempt for Phoenix bounced off the back rim at the buzzer.

Michael Finley scored 31 points, shooting 5-of-6 on three-pointers, and Nowitzki added 23 points and 12 rebounds for the Mavericks, who turned to rough defense and a slower tempo to bounce back from a 127-102 blowout loss in Game 1.

Erick Dampier, called out publicly by Nowitzki after being outscored by Amare Stoudemire 40-0 in Game 1, had 15 points, 10 in the first quarter, and grabbed 12 rebounds.

Stoudemire had 30 points and 16 rebounds for the Suns, who lost Joe Johnson to a mild concussion from a hard foul from Jerry Stackhouse with 19.7 seconds left in the first half. Steve Nash had 23 points and 13 assists, and Shawn Marion added 23 points and 15 rebounds.

Nowitzki sank two free throws to put Dallas ahead 106-102 with 1:55 to play, then Stoudemire missed a dunk and a layup on consecutive possessions. But Marion blocked Nowitzki’s shot, and Stoudemire dunked on a pick-and-roll feed from Nash to cut it to 106-104 with 50.9 seconds to play.

Nash’s 18-footer tied it at 106 with 27.4 seconds left. After a timeout, the Mavs got the ball to Nowitzki, who got the game-winning shot off over Richardson.