Mavs Fell Sixers in Comeback Blowout
Well, that's more like it! Mavs fall behind in first half, but return with a vengeance in the second. Great team win to close out the home stand at 3-3.
Game Story
KP was out for the Mavs. Philly was missing Joel Embiid.
The first half was a nightmare. Rick started Maxi in KP's place, but the gambit failed to produce a favorable opening. The Mavericks turned the ball over and gave up offensive rebounds at a fiendish rate (not just because of Maxi, of course -- no one looked good). They were saved only by the Sixers' abysmal shooting, and went into the interval with a 41-50 deficit, representing an improvement from 12 points down. They had set a season record for fewest points scored in a half. The less remembered about that, the better.
At halftime, one of the assistant coaches, Mike Weiner, gave a few well-timed words which Rick thinks motivated the team. They came out of the locker room with force, zoomed past the visitors about halfway through the third, and never looked back. In the fourth, they reached a double-digit lead that ultimately ballooned to as much as 21 points. Whew!
Analytics
This was a strange one. The Mavs put up a whopping 19 shots fewer than Philly, including a 10-try deficit in three-point attempts. Luckily for Dallas, the Sixers shot so poorly that the Mavs came out of the game with eight more points from the field than their opponent. The home team also had a 27-12 edge in free-throw attempts, and despite missing 9 free throws, came out way ahead on points from the line. At the final buzzer, the Mavericks were +2 on points from twos, +6 on points from threes, and +10 on made free throws.
Dallas lost 16 points on turnovers, but had a 16-point advantage in second-chance points, despite giving up 14 offensive rebounds. The defense looked much better in the second half, with the Sixers limited to 41 points, and the offense clicked, serving up 68 points in the last 24 minutes.
Players
Powell (35 min). It was a good night for the big man, who put up 19 points on 8-11 shooting, along with a season-high 12 rebounds. The FSSW crew complimented Dwight for stepping up in the absence of KP, putting the ball on the deck, shouldering part of the scoring load, crashing the boards, and doing a lot of dirty work. They particularly praised his energy and effort in the third quarter, when he led the team with 10 points. Powell is becoming a pretty reliable scorer, which could be an exciting development.
Luka (33 min) had a 19-8-12 line. He made only 4 shots out of 15 attempts, but got to the line for a game-high 12 freebies. He turned the ball over 5 times, but three of those were in the first quarter, and he took better care of the ball once he calmed down. Despite not shooting very well, he had a positive impact on the game, and did a good job of staying within the flow of the offense as the game went along.
DFS (32 min) had a steady performance, putting up 16 points on 7-10 shooting, and collecting 6 rebounds. Perhaps even more important than his contributions to the box score was his excellent defense. Cedric and Jet credited DFS and DP as two of the major factors in the victory. Doe Doe said after the game that he has the green light to decide whether to crash the offensive glass or get back on D on any given play, and feels that he has developed the ability to make good reads in that respect. Good progress!
Maxi (31 min) had 10 points and 8 boards in his starting role, and helped carry the defensive load in the front court. Rick thought Kleber played great. He would have loved to start Maxi every game in the last stretch, but cited some sort of minutes concern. Coach saw a need to play bigger and more physically against Philadelphia, so gave the German the nod to start.
Tim (30 min) recorded 12 points and 9 boards, and at times took over the primary ball-handling activity, giving Luka some time to play off the ball. THJ clearly considers it his job to take the initiative to carry the scoring load when necessary. That can sometimes result in his trying to do too much, but it is good to see someone take that kind of responsibility.
Rick thought that Jackson (16 min) did a terrific job spelling Maxi. Brunson fouled out in 10 minutes. Guarding Ben Simmons is hard.
Boban (8 min) put up 12 points in short minutes, and was featured on the promotional materials in this game against his former team. Rick said he made some huge plays, and commended him for staying ready. A favorite among teammates, fans, and even the opponent, he drew cheers whenever he scored, and his game-ending three had the bench and crowd going wild, lol. Powell said seeing Bobi make the sixth three of his career was "sheer elation" and "utter joy." Even KP was jumping up and cheering from the bench, and Luka was celebrating like they had won the game of the century. Fun times!
Random Observations
Dirk was in the crowd, sitting next to Mark Cuban. When he was introduced on the Jumbotron, the ovation was so loud that the Sixers coaches had to give up on trying to explain the next play to their huddle, lol. Dirk kept an eye on his compatriot from Wurzburg, and appeared to enjoy the game.
Kudos to Ryan Broekhoff and Ben Simmons for making a pre-game appearance to bring awareness to the fans regarding the disastrous wildfires in their homeland of Australia.
Remarks
The Mavs entered the game looking like they had come straight from the Lakers match. Terrible. I was beginning to fear that the team was on some type of downhill spiral. But in the second half, their attentive defense and rebounding took away the Sixers' transition game, and they were able to take advantage of an underperforming Philadelphia team. The offense was really clicking, in a way we hadn't seen in a while, and that was satisfying. The crowd was very into it, and Rick thought that was a factor in the W. Great to see the Mavs looking like themselves again!
Next. Golden State, in San Francisco, on Tuesday.
Go Mavs!
Well, that's more like it! Mavs fall behind in first half, but return with a vengeance in the second. Great team win to close out the home stand at 3-3.
Game Story
KP was out for the Mavs. Philly was missing Joel Embiid.
The first half was a nightmare. Rick started Maxi in KP's place, but the gambit failed to produce a favorable opening. The Mavericks turned the ball over and gave up offensive rebounds at a fiendish rate (not just because of Maxi, of course -- no one looked good). They were saved only by the Sixers' abysmal shooting, and went into the interval with a 41-50 deficit, representing an improvement from 12 points down. They had set a season record for fewest points scored in a half. The less remembered about that, the better.
At halftime, one of the assistant coaches, Mike Weiner, gave a few well-timed words which Rick thinks motivated the team. They came out of the locker room with force, zoomed past the visitors about halfway through the third, and never looked back. In the fourth, they reached a double-digit lead that ultimately ballooned to as much as 21 points. Whew!
Analytics
This was a strange one. The Mavs put up a whopping 19 shots fewer than Philly, including a 10-try deficit in three-point attempts. Luckily for Dallas, the Sixers shot so poorly that the Mavs came out of the game with eight more points from the field than their opponent. The home team also had a 27-12 edge in free-throw attempts, and despite missing 9 free throws, came out way ahead on points from the line. At the final buzzer, the Mavericks were +2 on points from twos, +6 on points from threes, and +10 on made free throws.
Dallas lost 16 points on turnovers, but had a 16-point advantage in second-chance points, despite giving up 14 offensive rebounds. The defense looked much better in the second half, with the Sixers limited to 41 points, and the offense clicked, serving up 68 points in the last 24 minutes.
Players
Powell (35 min). It was a good night for the big man, who put up 19 points on 8-11 shooting, along with a season-high 12 rebounds. The FSSW crew complimented Dwight for stepping up in the absence of KP, putting the ball on the deck, shouldering part of the scoring load, crashing the boards, and doing a lot of dirty work. They particularly praised his energy and effort in the third quarter, when he led the team with 10 points. Powell is becoming a pretty reliable scorer, which could be an exciting development.
Luka (33 min) had a 19-8-12 line. He made only 4 shots out of 15 attempts, but got to the line for a game-high 12 freebies. He turned the ball over 5 times, but three of those were in the first quarter, and he took better care of the ball once he calmed down. Despite not shooting very well, he had a positive impact on the game, and did a good job of staying within the flow of the offense as the game went along.
DFS (32 min) had a steady performance, putting up 16 points on 7-10 shooting, and collecting 6 rebounds. Perhaps even more important than his contributions to the box score was his excellent defense. Cedric and Jet credited DFS and DP as two of the major factors in the victory. Doe Doe said after the game that he has the green light to decide whether to crash the offensive glass or get back on D on any given play, and feels that he has developed the ability to make good reads in that respect. Good progress!
Maxi (31 min) had 10 points and 8 boards in his starting role, and helped carry the defensive load in the front court. Rick thought Kleber played great. He would have loved to start Maxi every game in the last stretch, but cited some sort of minutes concern. Coach saw a need to play bigger and more physically against Philadelphia, so gave the German the nod to start.
Tim (30 min) recorded 12 points and 9 boards, and at times took over the primary ball-handling activity, giving Luka some time to play off the ball. THJ clearly considers it his job to take the initiative to carry the scoring load when necessary. That can sometimes result in his trying to do too much, but it is good to see someone take that kind of responsibility.
Rick thought that Jackson (16 min) did a terrific job spelling Maxi. Brunson fouled out in 10 minutes. Guarding Ben Simmons is hard.
Boban (8 min) put up 12 points in short minutes, and was featured on the promotional materials in this game against his former team. Rick said he made some huge plays, and commended him for staying ready. A favorite among teammates, fans, and even the opponent, he drew cheers whenever he scored, and his game-ending three had the bench and crowd going wild, lol. Powell said seeing Bobi make the sixth three of his career was "sheer elation" and "utter joy." Even KP was jumping up and cheering from the bench, and Luka was celebrating like they had won the game of the century. Fun times!
Random Observations
Dirk was in the crowd, sitting next to Mark Cuban. When he was introduced on the Jumbotron, the ovation was so loud that the Sixers coaches had to give up on trying to explain the next play to their huddle, lol. Dirk kept an eye on his compatriot from Wurzburg, and appeared to enjoy the game.
Kudos to Ryan Broekhoff and Ben Simmons for making a pre-game appearance to bring awareness to the fans regarding the disastrous wildfires in their homeland of Australia.
Remarks
The Mavs entered the game looking like they had come straight from the Lakers match. Terrible. I was beginning to fear that the team was on some type of downhill spiral. But in the second half, their attentive defense and rebounding took away the Sixers' transition game, and they were able to take advantage of an underperforming Philadelphia team. The offense was really clicking, in a way we hadn't seen in a while, and that was satisfying. The crowd was very into it, and Rick thought that was a factor in the W. Great to see the Mavs looking like themselves again!
Next. Golden State, in San Francisco, on Tuesday.
Go Mavs!