Bass rebounds in more ways than one

Brandon Bass erupted for a career-high 19 points off the bench last night, quite a rebound for the bruising power forward after a seven-point effort Thursday in his first start with Dallas. Bass apparently wasn’t as calm as he claimed to be before the Houston game.

Avery Johnson alluded to Bass’ nervousness, saying the rugged power forward was late getting off the bench during pregame introductions. The team kidded Bass about it again yesterday morning.

“He was back in his normal role,” Johnson said. “He made some shots, he was decisive, he didn’t fool around with the ball. Because of it, he got some shots to fall and he made some strong dunks inside. We need him to play around the rim for us in there and we’re glad that he did.”

Bass scored 11 in the first quarter, as the rest of the starters struggled. He also threw down several ferocious dunks during the 29-minute outing that also included seven boards.

“I just try to bring the same intensity off the bench every night,” Bass said. “I just need to go out there and be aggressive and not think so much about trying to do the right things, and I just need to go out there and play hard.”