Losers in 5 of their last 7
DALLAS- The Dallas Mavericks hosted the Denver Nuggets Monday, hoping to pick up a win against their conference rival. Dallas entered the night coming off a 133-108 loss to Houston Saturday.
Monday’s contest opened with the Mavericks having to play catch up from the very beginning, when Denver’s Garry Harris knocked down a 3-pointer for the opening basket. It wasn’t long before Dallas found themselves in a hole, trailing 17-8 halfway through the opening frame.
A pair of Luka Doncic free throws brought the game to as close as 21-19 with 4:54 remaining in the first quarter, but Denver ended the period on a strong run, and led 38- 31 entering the second quarter.
The struggles continued for the Mavericks, as Denver opened the second quarter the same way they opened the first quarter, by knocking down a 3-pointer. This time it was Denver’s JaMychal Green who hit the long range shot, to give them their first double-digit lead of the night.
Kristaps Porzingis answered back with a 3-pointer of his own for Dallas, but unfortunately it was his only points of the frame, as the Nuggets were able to shut him out for the remainder of the half. Dallas never quite found their rhythm, and they went to the locker rooms, trailing 70-58 at the end of the first half.
Porzingis came alive to open the second half, knocking down a jump shot, a layup and a pair of free throws in the first few minutes to get the Mavericks back within seven points. Dallas shooting guard Tim Hardaway Jr. followed this with a run of his own, scoring 11 points in four minutes to tie things up at 80-80. The two teams traded baskets for a majority of the third quarter, and the Mavericks took a 94-92 lead entering the fourth quarter. It didn’t take long for
It didn’t take long for Denver to take back their lead, as Green once again knocked down a 3-pointer for the Nuggets to put them ahead 95-94. With 3:53 left Luka Doncic hit a jump shot to give the Mavericks a 2-point lead, but the Nuggets ended the game on a 11-7 run, winning the game by a final score of 117-113.
After a handful of shaky offensive performances, Doncic had a stellar night, finishing with a game-high in points (36), assists (16) and rebounds (11). Doncic recently passed Michael Jordan on the all-time list for most career triple-doubles with 31.
Other notables for Dallas were Hardaway Jr. who had 19 points, James Johnson who had 16 points on 7-8 shooting, and Porzingis who also had 16 points. Jalen Brunson also had a strong performance, finishing with 12 points, making all four of his shot attempts in the game.
Dallas will be back in action with a pair of back-to-back games against the Utah Jazz Wednesday and Friday. Friday’s game will be aired on ESPN and is set to tip off at 9 p.m.