DALLAS -- Wesley Matthews delivered in the Dallas Mavericks' time of need.

The guard scored nine of his team-high 22 points in the fourth quarter as the Mavericks extended their winning streak to three games with a 103-93 victory over the Milwaukee Bucks on Monday.

The victory moved the Mavs (18-13) a season-best five games over .500.

"My teammates were finding me," Matthews said. "It's one of those games you have to take what the defense is giving you. Play within the system but look to be aggressive. I think I was able to do that tonight. The team was finding me, just letting it fly."

After trailing by as many as 13 in the third quarter, the Bucks were able to tie the game up at 89 with 4:48 to go in the fourth quarter. Despite the effort, they didn't have quite enough to get over the hump.

Matthews fended off Milwaukee's comeback attempt as he rattled off back-to-back 3-point buckets. His scoring helped fuel an 11-2 run over the final 3:50 of the game, and the Mavs never relinquished the lead.

The ball was moving rapidly, as the Mavericks recorded 25 assists on 38 made field goals. Guard J.J. Barea, again in the starting lineup for the injured Deron Williams, led Dallas with five assists.

Dallas also protected the basketball, committing just four turnovers to tie the franchise low for a game.

"We got timely stops when we needed them. The key to the game was we only turned the ball over four times," Mavs coach Rick Carlisle said. "We got outrebounded badly, which is not good, but our low turnovers mitigated that somewhat.

"We survived a difficult game ... but we knew it was going to be this kind of game. They are a young, aggressive, attacking team, and you have to admire the way they play."

Milwaukee guard Jerryd Bayless scored eight of his 19 points in the fourth quarter. It was his first game back after missing the previous 11 due to a left ankle sprain. Guard Khris Middleton added 15 points for the Bucks -- his seventh consecutive game with 15 or more.

Carlisle continued to tinker with his lineup as the team was without the services of Williams for the third consecutive game. He reinserted forward Chandler Parsons into the first unit. The move appeared to have favorable results, as Parsons looked comfortable on the court, finishing with 13 points, four rebounds and four assists.

It was a reunion game for Dallas' Zaza Pachulia. The center spent the previous two seasons in Milwaukee and appeared in 200 games (92 starts) for the Bucks. Pachulia continued his solid play this season, scoring 17 points and pulling down eight rebounds.

Dallas won despite a subpar game from forward Dirk Nowitzki. In his worst shooting performance of the season, Nowitzki made just three of 15 attempts from the field and scored just seven points.

Former Mavs guard O.J. Mayo played well against his former team, scoring 13 points off the bench for the Bucks.

Milwaukee was without the services of forward John Henson, as he was dealing with an elbow issue.

The Bucks (12-20) lost their sixth consecutive meeting with the Mavericks and 14th in the past 19 in the series, including 11 of the past 13 in Dallas.

"We fought back. We didn't quit. The whole team didn't quit," Bayless said. "We kept on fighting. We just have to do that for 48 minutes. Not 24 or 37. We have to go the whole 48 every night.

The Bucks fell for the 13th time in their past 14 road games.

NOTES: The Mavericks went 16-for-33 (.485) from beyond the arc against Chicago on Saturday. It marked their second straight game with 16 made 3-pointers. They went 10-for-22 from long range Monday. ... Bucks PF Greg Monroe has posted seven double-doubles in his past 11 games, including a four-game streak from Dec. 4 through Dec. 9. Monroe is tied for the seventh-most double-doubles recorded in the NBA this season with 15. ... The Mavericks improved to 6-0 when C Zaza Pachulia scores 15-plus points. Pachulia has recorded 16 double-doubles through his first 31 games this season after he had a total of 15 double-doubles in 73 games with Milwaukee last season.