By Girald Gaston
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| Dallas Mavericks star Luka Doncic and Los Angeles Clippers star Paul George (PHOTO: Rappler) |
Dallas Mavericks recorded the largest margin of at the half
in NBA History, to demolish the Kawhi-less Los Angeles Clippers, 124-73, Sunday
night at Staples Center, Los Angeles.
Mavericks, led by Luka Doncic, had enough firepower to set
an NBA mark 50-point drubbing after two quarters, to cruise to their first win
after three tries in the young season.
Doncic spearheaded the Mavs attack with game-high 24
markers, while Josh Richardson and Tim Hardaway Jr. added 21 and 18,
respectively. Dallas kept their dominance in the second half, and retained the
50-point hole at the end of the game.
There’s no huge secret,” Richardson said. “We just got up
and played well. We played with a sense of urgency.”
Mavericks hammered the nail in the coffin early in the game
with a 77-27 cushion, the largest at the break in the shot-clock era, which
began in 1954-1955.
The Slovenian star had 18 points, seven rebounds and four
assists in the first half. He tied the 13-point scoring output of Clippers in
the first quarter. Mavs converted in almost all their possession in two
quarters while forcing the Clippers into 9 of 37 field-goal shooting.
Dallas head coach Rick Carlisle emphasized that Mavs should
be consistent in the second half.
“The challenge is to maintain that level of
competitiveness,” he said. “Our guys established a standard for collective
toughness and will that we need to find a way to maintain.”
Clippers started the third quarter on a 10-0 blast to get
within 40 points. The Mavs answered the call as they connected to on four
consecutive 3-pointers — three of which came from Hardaway Jr. — to restore
their deficit to 50. Dallas were ahead 104-57 entering the last period.
Doncic flirted with another triple-double, as he finished
with nine rebounds and eight assists. He totaled 83 points in their three games
of the season, two were losses.
"We showed who we are. People judge us like first two
games of season, it’s a long season,” Doncic said. “We got to keep going like
that. We got to play defense.”
In the fourth quarter, former Clipper Boban Marjanovic
cashed a jumper to extend the run to 12-0 , that pushed the Mavs to their
largest lead of 57, 120-63.
Mavs were accurate from the field, shooting 49 percent and
made 14 total 3-pointers. They outrebounded the Clippers 54-36 whole match.
Paul George led the Clippers in a losing effort with 15
points before resting in the entire second half, while Serge Ibaka added 13
points and nine rebounds after three quarters in team’s first loss. On Friday
night, Ibaka accidentally elbowed Kawhi Leonard in the mouth, causing their
star's unavailability in their lopsided defeat.
Dallas will host Charlotte Hornets on Wednesday. Clippers
will stay for the second of their three-game home stand against Minnesota on
Tuesday.
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