The Dallas Mavericks trailed from the opening bucket, but an explosive third quarter pushed them past the Los Angeles Lakers for a 124-115 win on Christmas Day.
The Mavericks trailed by 11 at halftime (54-43) before erupting for 51 points in the third quarter, the highest-scoring quarter on Christmas in NBA history and a league-best this season.
Christian Wood started the third-quarter surge with a three-pointer, and Dallas was within one when Luka Doncic passed to Tim Hardaway Jr. in the corner for a three and the first Dallas lead at 65-63.
Doncic finished with 32 points, Wood scored 30, and Hardaway Jr. had 26 points to become the first trio of teammates to each score 25 or more points on Christmas Day since 1962.
Dallas matched its first-half scoring total (43 points) in 10 third-quarter minutes and beat their previous season-best quarter production (44 points vs. Denver on November 18) on the next possession.
The Lakers (13-20) got the deficit as close as 10 points in the fourth quarter, but the Mavericks (18-16) repeatedly responded on a night of celebration.
Dallas celebrated the unveiling of a statue of team legend Dirk Nowitzki before the game. Then, the team celebrated its first Christmas Day win since 2008 and just the second Christmas Day home win in franchise history.
“I think we had to get the jitters out a little bit, some guys’ first time playing on Christmas,” Hardaway said. “Just being able to appreciate the opportunity.”
WHAT TO KNOW
The matchup was billed as a superstar clash between Doncic and the Lakers’ LeBron James, and it lived up to the hype.
Six days before his 38th birthday, James scored 38 points, one shy of his season-high, to add to his resume as the NBA’s all-time leader in Christmas games (17) and scoring (460).
James took advantage of the Mavericks being without their three best wing defenders — Dorian Finney-Smith (right hip adductor), Maxi Kleber (right hamstring surgery), and Josh Green (right elbow sprain). Hardaway Jr. served as the primary defender against James.
But James was outshined by Doncic in the second half. The Lakers sent constant double-teams at Doncic in the first half, holding the 23-year-old superstar to just six shot attempts before halftime.
The third-quarter surge changed that when Wood, Hardaway, and Spencer Dinwiddie (twice) hit three-pointers to start the period, forcing the Lakers to quit hounding Doncic and pay more defensive attention to the Mavericks’ supporting cast.
That opened up the Dallas offense with Doncic (13 points), Hardaway (16), and Wood (9) combining for 38 points in the third period as the Mavericks shot 72% from the floor (18 of 25) and 69.2% from three (9 of 13).
Doncic shined, finishing with nine rebounds and notching six of his nine assists in the third quarter. His 32 points are now a franchise record for most on Christmas Day.
BY THE NUMBERS
Wood had his most productive day as a Maverick, with his 30 points putting him with Doncic and Nowitzki as the only players in franchise history to score 30 or more points on Christmas Day.
Wood was incredibly efficient as he shot 70.5% (12 of 17) from the floor, chipped in eight rebounds, and tied a career-high with seven assists.
The Mavericks outscored the Lakers by 16 points in Wood’s 38 minutes on the court.
WHO SAID
Doncic appreciated the challenge of going against a legend like James and the mid-day staging of the game, especially because it put the game on during primetime in his home country of Slovenia.
“It was amazing, especially the primetime in Slovenia,” Doncic said. “All my friends and family can watch, but to go against a guy like him, his 18th year and he’s [almost] 38 on a Christmas game. It’s amazing to see him play and just go against him. It’s incredible.”
UP NEXT
Dallas will stay home to host the New York Knicks (18-16) on Wednesday night.
