Luka Doncic scored 44 points on 17-of-21 shooting and the Dallas Mavericks blasted the visiting Los Angeles Clippers 144-126 on Friday night as part of the NBA in-season tournament.
Kyrie Irving added 27 points for Dallas, which used a 32-2 burst to overcome an 11-point deficit and turn the game into a laugher in its direction. The Mavericks outscored the Clippers 47-18 in the second quarter.
Tim Hardaway Jr. scored 17 points and Derrick Jones Jr. added 11 points, 10 rebounds, three assists and three steals for Dallas, which is off to a 7-2 start.
Kawhi Leonard scored 26 points for the Clippers, who finished an 0-4 road trip and fell to 0-5 on the road this season. This was the Clippers’ first in-season tournament game, while the Mavericks improved to 1-1. Both teams play in West Group B.
Dallas made 52 percent of its shots and was 19 of 42 (45.2 percent) from 3-point range.
Outside of Leonard, the Clippers’ other three stars combined for just 36 points on 11-of-29 shooting. James Harden and Russell Westbrook scored 14 points apiece and Paul George had just eight.
Bones Hyland was Los Angeles’ second-leading scorer with 17 points off the bench. Ivica Zubac had 12 points and eight rebounds.
The Clippers connected on 48.9 percent of their attempts, including 8 of 27 (29.6 percent) from behind the arc.
Los Angeles was leading 33-22 late in the first quarter when Dallas erupted.
Irving connected on two 3-pointers and added two free throws in a 41-second span as the Mavericks closed within 33-30 before the end of the quarter.
Dallas continued its splurge with the first nine points of the second quarter to take a six-point lead. After an inside basket by Zubac for the Clippers, the Mavericks then rolled off 15 straight points to make it 54-35 midway through the period.
Dallas led by 28 later in the half before holding a 77-51 advantage into the break. Doncic scored 27 and Irving had 20 in the half.
Leonard scored 16 in the first half for the Clippers. Harden had all of his 14 points before the break.
Doncic scored 15 points in the third quarter, including a trey that increased the Dallas lead to 32 at 95-63 with 7:50 to play. The Mavericks led 115-89 entering the final stanza and cruised to the finish.
–Field Level Media
