The Dallas Mavericks bounced back from their Wednesday night loss in Chicago by routing the Spurs 123-109 in San Antonio.
Luka Doncic and Kristaps Porzingis led the Mavericks by both having their best games of the season. Doncic finished with 32 points, 12 rebounds, and 15 assists for his first triple-double of the season and 37th overall in his career.
This was his 18th career 30-point triple-double breaking a tie with Larry Bird and Magic Johnson for sixth all-time in that category.
Porzingis finished with a season-high 32 points and was a force on the defensive end with three blocks. This was the fifth time in three seasons that both Doncic and Porzingis reached 30 points in the same game.
“Playing with Luka is extremely easy,” Porzingis said postgame. “He takes so much pressure off everybody else. Makes everybody else better and gets more open looks.”
This win makes the Mavericks a perfect 3-0 against the Spurs this season and gives Dallas the season series victory over San Antonio for the third straight year.
Their three matchups this season came in a span of fifteen days, but Friday night’s win was the most lopsided for the Mavericks. Their previous two matchups were decided by a combined six points. Porzingis did not play in either of the last two meetings due to a back injury.
The Mavericks and Spurs will not match up again until the season finale for both teams on April 10.
The start of the game was familiar for Maverick fans as the team got off to a slow start. The Spurs connected on multiple threes and took a 16-11 lead halfway through the opening quarter.
Then, Doncic caught fire; he had a dunk, two threes, and an assist to Dorian Finney-Smith for a dunk in a short span to give Dallas a five-point lead. The reserves led by Jalen Brunson and Reggie Bullock then entered the game and held the Spurs off to end the quarter leading 31-22.
In the second quarter, the Mavericks quickly extended their lead to double digits, but then the Spurs gained some momentum and pulled back to within four points with seven minutes left in the half.
The Spurs kept the score within single digits until Porzingis hit a three-point shot in transition that gave the Mavericks an 11 point lead with about two minutes left in the quarter.
The Spurs once again clawed back to within single digits, but then Doncic hit a three with ten seconds remaining, and Porzingis connected on an improbable last-second half-court heave to give the Mavericks a 68-57 lead at halftime.
In the third quarter, Dallas took total control of the game behind a scorching offensive pace and great defense led by Porzingis. The Mavericks built a 22 point lead with about three minutes left in the quarter, with Doncic completing his triple-double by this point.
Jalen Brunson was impressive in the quarter as well, at one point scoring eight consecutive points. Dallas entered the fourth quarter leading comfortably 102-77.
The fourth continued similarly for the Mavericks as they led by as many as 27 points. The Spurs finished the game on a 20-9 run, but it was so far out of reach that it never felt like they had a real chance to come back and win.
Protecting the ball was a clear point of emphasis as Dallas ended the game with a season-low five turnovers. In their previous meeting with the Spurs on November 3, the Mavericks committed 19 turnovers.
“They’re aggressive; they’re going to use their length and get out in passing lanes,” Mavericks Head Coach Jason Kidd said postgame. “We felt we had to take care of the ball, and we did that tonight in the first half as well as the second half.”
The Spurs were led by Devin Vassell, who had 20 points, and Dejounte Murray and Keldon Johnson, who had 15 points each. Their record drops to 4-8 with the loss.
Dallas’ record improves to 8-4 on the season. Their next game will be Monday against the Denver Nuggets at home.
