Dirk Nowitzki scored 24 points, Shawn Marion added 14 and the Mavericks stunned the erratic Lakers 93-81 in Game 2 last night in Los Angeles, taking a 2-0 second-round lead over the two-time defending champions.

Jason Kidd scored 10 points for the Mavs, who pushed the Lakers halfway to playoff elimination with Nowitzki’s stellar shooting, another steady defensive performance, and a decisive 9-0 fourth-quarter rally.

Kobe Bryant scored 23 points for the Lakers, who hadn’t lost the first two games of a playoff series since the 2008 NBA finals — also the last series they lost. Only three NBA teams have come back to win a best-of-seven series after losing the first two at home.

The Lakers could be short-handed for Game 3 tomorrow night in Dallas: Ron Artest was ejected with 24.4 seconds left for apparently clotheslining Dallas guard Jose Barea, possibly leading to a suspension.

The Lakers missed their first 15 3-point attempts in Game 2, only avoiding its first playoff game without a 3-pointer since May 8, 2001, on Bryant’s 3-pointer with 2:43 left. Los Angeles finished 2 for 20 on 3-pointers.

Bulls 86, Hawks 73

In Chicago, newly crowned MVP Derrick Rose scored 25 points, Joakim Noah added 19 points and 14 rebounds as the Bulls beat Atlanta in Game 2 of their Eastern Conference semifinals to tie the series.

The top-seeded Bulls shook off a dismal performance in the opener and looked more like the team with a league-best 62 wins, building a 14-point lead and ending the game on a 9-2 run after the Hawks got within six.

Jeff Teague had another good game filling in for the injured Kirk Hinrich with 21 points, but Joe Johnson and Jamal Crawford struggled after coming up big in the opener for Atlanta. Johnson’s output dipped from 34 points to 16, while Crawford had 11 after pouring in 22 in Game 1.