MAVS DOMINATE SHORTHANDED NETS
BROOKLYN HELD TO 34 SECOND-HALF POINTS
Your Dallas Mavericks moved to a surprisingly comfortable win in Brooklyn.
NOTABLE ITEMS
GAME FLOW. Porzingis returned to action, enabling Rick to return to his “normal” starting lineup of Luka, Josh, DFS, Maxi and KP. Durant, Kyrie, and Dinwiddie were out for the Nets.
Dallas led with a 38-26 first quarter. Fans were treated to a Luka-Harden battle, with each star putting up 15 points. The Mavs were a blistering 61% from the floor, including 6-11 from three, and closed the frame with a 14-2 run. Your boys’ three-point shooting cooled off in the second period (4-12), whereas Houston hit 7-13 in that frame. Although the Mavs lost the quarter 30-38, they carried a 68-64 lead into halftime, thanks in no small part to 20 points off 9 Brooklyn turnovers.
The Nets collapsed in the third, with their mighty offense scoring only 18 points. The two teams combined for a putrid 2-15 from deep, but Kristaps shone with 10 points in the period. The scoreboard read 94-82 Mavs after three. The fourth was mostly garbage time, with KP and THJ appearing for only 15 seconds combined, and the Nets managing to record only 16 points. The deep-bench players got a nice run-out, and the outcome was never in doubt.
STATS. The Maverick point differentials were +20 on points from twos, a push on points from threes, and -3 on made free throws. They shot a respectable 39% from long range (14-36), and clobbered the Nets on points in the paint (50-36). The story of the game was turnovers, with Brooklyn losing a whopping 32 points on 19 giveaways, and the Mavs giving up a stingy 9 points in that category.
DONCIC. Luka had a relatively quiet stat line by his standards (27/6/7, 2 steals)), but make no mistake, his fingerprints were all over this contest. The young superstar put on a game-managing masterclass, and he took advantage of his superior size and strength over the dainty Nets to perfection. He also took wonderful care of the ball, recording an impressive 1 turnover in 34 minutes on the court. Rachel Nichols asked Doncic after the game what he thought about Carlisle’s recent comments about his similarity to Larry Bird, and Luka, always humble, replied that he has many games to go before he can be compared to Bird. What an amazing player!
PORZINGIS. Kristaps looked fresh as a daisy after his time off from back stiffness, and exhibited the type of engaged performance that the Mavs presumably hoped for from him when they acquired him. He played a lot of his favored post-up game, and punished the Nets for guarding him with smaller players to the tune of 18 points and 7-13 shooting, taking only 2 three-point attempts on the night. He was quite eager for the ball, kicking a chair when Luka looked off him, and following with a missed shot from the logo early in the shot clock. After some trade rumors in the past week, I guess he wanted to make sure he got a chance to shine in this one. Perhaps more importantly, he was an important defensive factor, making an impact on the Nets’ ability to score at the rim.
DFS. Doe-Doe has a penchant for contributing his effective performances quietly, and this game was no exception. He put up double-digit shooting (12 points, 5-6 from the field), and stuffed the stat sheet with 8 rebounds, 4 assists, two steals, a block, and a game-high +24. His defensive presence was felt in a team-high 35 minutes, and he led the squad on the boards, and was awarded the championship belt for being the Defensive Player of the game. His highlight reel featured a magnificent chase-down block on Harden.
HONORABLE MENTIONS. The Mavs had balanced scoring on the night, which is something they have been aspiring to. In addition to Luka’s 27 points, KP had 18, Brunson 14, Tim 13, DFS 12, and Josh 11. All Mavericks who played at least 10 minutes were in positive territory for the match. Maybe the most impressive development was the Mavs’ defensive performance in the second half, with the team clicking on that end of the floor.
NETS. The Mavs, for the most part, played Harden in single coverage, and he responded with a game-high 29 points, albeit with an inefficient 4-11 shooting performance. He got to the line for only 8 FT attempts, and was responsible for 6 turnovers. Only two other Nets were in double figures — Jeff Green and Bruce Brown with 12 apiece. Although Brooklyn shot very poorly, hitting 32% from three and only 41% overall, it was their ghastly inability to take care of the ball that really did them in. Can’t imagine that their head coach, former Mav Steve Nash, was too proud of the night’s display.
OBSERVATIONS
Luka congratulated his squad for playing “like a team,” and I think few spectators would disagree. Really great to see the Mavs come together, especially after their unfocused prior performance against the Sixers. Defensive juggernauts the Nets are not, and Dallas took full advantage of the Nets’ ineffectiveness on that front, abusing Brooklyn over and over in the paint.
There is no question that the Mavericks caught a huge break with both Durant and Kyrie unable to go, but they were overdue for a stroke of luck this season, and we’ll take it. The win is welcome, but even more encouraging was the way it happened, particularly the defense in the second half and the well-coordinated effort for the whole game.
The victory brought the Mavs back to .500, at 16-16. They remain in 9th place, half a game ahead of Memphis and 1.5 games behind Denver.
Our boys face the Magic in Orlando on Monday. We’ll see if they can sustain this level of play.
Keep the faith, Mavs fans!
BROOKLYN HELD TO 34 SECOND-HALF POINTS
Your Dallas Mavericks moved to a surprisingly comfortable win in Brooklyn.
NOTABLE ITEMS
GAME FLOW. Porzingis returned to action, enabling Rick to return to his “normal” starting lineup of Luka, Josh, DFS, Maxi and KP. Durant, Kyrie, and Dinwiddie were out for the Nets.
Dallas led with a 38-26 first quarter. Fans were treated to a Luka-Harden battle, with each star putting up 15 points. The Mavs were a blistering 61% from the floor, including 6-11 from three, and closed the frame with a 14-2 run. Your boys’ three-point shooting cooled off in the second period (4-12), whereas Houston hit 7-13 in that frame. Although the Mavs lost the quarter 30-38, they carried a 68-64 lead into halftime, thanks in no small part to 20 points off 9 Brooklyn turnovers.
The Nets collapsed in the third, with their mighty offense scoring only 18 points. The two teams combined for a putrid 2-15 from deep, but Kristaps shone with 10 points in the period. The scoreboard read 94-82 Mavs after three. The fourth was mostly garbage time, with KP and THJ appearing for only 15 seconds combined, and the Nets managing to record only 16 points. The deep-bench players got a nice run-out, and the outcome was never in doubt.
STATS. The Maverick point differentials were +20 on points from twos, a push on points from threes, and -3 on made free throws. They shot a respectable 39% from long range (14-36), and clobbered the Nets on points in the paint (50-36). The story of the game was turnovers, with Brooklyn losing a whopping 32 points on 19 giveaways, and the Mavs giving up a stingy 9 points in that category.
DONCIC. Luka had a relatively quiet stat line by his standards (27/6/7, 2 steals)), but make no mistake, his fingerprints were all over this contest. The young superstar put on a game-managing masterclass, and he took advantage of his superior size and strength over the dainty Nets to perfection. He also took wonderful care of the ball, recording an impressive 1 turnover in 34 minutes on the court. Rachel Nichols asked Doncic after the game what he thought about Carlisle’s recent comments about his similarity to Larry Bird, and Luka, always humble, replied that he has many games to go before he can be compared to Bird. What an amazing player!
PORZINGIS. Kristaps looked fresh as a daisy after his time off from back stiffness, and exhibited the type of engaged performance that the Mavs presumably hoped for from him when they acquired him. He played a lot of his favored post-up game, and punished the Nets for guarding him with smaller players to the tune of 18 points and 7-13 shooting, taking only 2 three-point attempts on the night. He was quite eager for the ball, kicking a chair when Luka looked off him, and following with a missed shot from the logo early in the shot clock. After some trade rumors in the past week, I guess he wanted to make sure he got a chance to shine in this one. Perhaps more importantly, he was an important defensive factor, making an impact on the Nets’ ability to score at the rim.
DFS. Doe-Doe has a penchant for contributing his effective performances quietly, and this game was no exception. He put up double-digit shooting (12 points, 5-6 from the field), and stuffed the stat sheet with 8 rebounds, 4 assists, two steals, a block, and a game-high +24. His defensive presence was felt in a team-high 35 minutes, and he led the squad on the boards, and was awarded the championship belt for being the Defensive Player of the game. His highlight reel featured a magnificent chase-down block on Harden.
HONORABLE MENTIONS. The Mavs had balanced scoring on the night, which is something they have been aspiring to. In addition to Luka’s 27 points, KP had 18, Brunson 14, Tim 13, DFS 12, and Josh 11. All Mavericks who played at least 10 minutes were in positive territory for the match. Maybe the most impressive development was the Mavs’ defensive performance in the second half, with the team clicking on that end of the floor.
NETS. The Mavs, for the most part, played Harden in single coverage, and he responded with a game-high 29 points, albeit with an inefficient 4-11 shooting performance. He got to the line for only 8 FT attempts, and was responsible for 6 turnovers. Only two other Nets were in double figures — Jeff Green and Bruce Brown with 12 apiece. Although Brooklyn shot very poorly, hitting 32% from three and only 41% overall, it was their ghastly inability to take care of the ball that really did them in. Can’t imagine that their head coach, former Mav Steve Nash, was too proud of the night’s display.
OBSERVATIONS
Luka congratulated his squad for playing “like a team,” and I think few spectators would disagree. Really great to see the Mavs come together, especially after their unfocused prior performance against the Sixers. Defensive juggernauts the Nets are not, and Dallas took full advantage of the Nets’ ineffectiveness on that front, abusing Brooklyn over and over in the paint.
There is no question that the Mavericks caught a huge break with both Durant and Kyrie unable to go, but they were overdue for a stroke of luck this season, and we’ll take it. The win is welcome, but even more encouraging was the way it happened, particularly the defense in the second half and the well-coordinated effort for the whole game.
The victory brought the Mavs back to .500, at 16-16. They remain in 9th place, half a game ahead of Memphis and 1.5 games behind Denver.
Our boys face the Magic in Orlando on Monday. We’ll see if they can sustain this level of play.
Keep the faith, Mavs fans!