The Phoenix Suns remain the Dallas Mavericks’ feared opponent. For the ninth time in a row, last year’s finalists prevailed against the Texans and, thanks to a great team effort, won in Dallas with 109:101. The Mavs collapse completely in the closing stages.
Dallas Mavericks (26-20) – Phoenix Suns (35-9) 101:109 (BOXSCORE)
In the last seven minutes of the game, the Mavs only got 6 points, Phoenix finally won the final quarter with 35:19. It was almost a copy of the first two duels this season between the two teams, even then the Suns kept the upper hand thanks to good final phases.
Luka Doncic was still missing in the first two games, but the Slovenian couldn’t do anything in the fourth quarter either because he was signed off by Phoenix’s strong defense. The star guard scored 19 of his 28 points (9/23 FG, 8/11 FT, 8 rebounds, 8 assists) before the break and was also part of the problem with 8 turnovers. The Suns generated 31 points from 19 turnovers by the Mavs, 13 of them in the fourth quarter alone. However, the Slovenian also struggled with neck problems in the fourth quarter after a hard fall.
The guests’ best scorer was Devin Booker (28, 11/25 FG), but the Suns’ comeback was led by Chris Paul (20, 8/14 FG, 11 assists), Mikal Bridges (12, 6 assists, 4 steals) and backup Center Bismack Biyombo (9) on. Jae Crowder scored every one of his 13 points after the break. On the Mavs side, Jalen Brunson (19, 8/13 FG, 6 TO) dropped after three good quarters, as did Kristaps Porzingis (18, 11 rebounds). Maxi Kleber had 9 points (3/9), 5 rebounds and 4 assists in 27 minutes.
Luka Doncic shines in the first half
Not only did two of the hottest teams in the NBA meet here, but also two of the four best defenses. And that was noticeable, both teams defended well. Phoenix initially left Kleber open, the German took six three-pointers in the first five minutes alone, with only the last of these attempts falling. For the Suns, on the other hand, Booker (12 in the first quarter) quickly got hot, Doncic countered with post-ups and a few trips to the free-throw line. When the Slovenian hit his first three, the Mavs had their first “major” lead, and after 12 minutes the Texans were 26-22.
One of the reasons for this was that Phoenix didn’t hit anything from outside. After Booker had sunk the first try of the evening, the guests missed 16 triples in a row, only a minute before the break Cam Johnson broke the spell. In the meantime, Phoenix was still in front again, but then the Porzingis minutes came. First the Latvian blocked a lay by JaVale McGee, then he was found by Kleber for an alley-oop and shortly afterwards his second threesome of the evening (36:32). It was a 14-0 run over four minutes, with CP3 interestingly being defended by Kleber. With defense and booker offense, Phoenix fought back, before Doncic ended with a three-pointer with the siren after a steal of the first half (53:45).
Chris Paul leads the Suns’ comeback
After the change, Crowder scored twice from distance, but the Suns couldn’t find an answer to Doncic’s post-ups on the other side, from which the Slovenian scored or found the cutter. And yet the Suns were back in the game, at the latest after a 12-2 run, in which Bridges put Phoenix in front again in transition. The Suns annoyed Doncic more, the all-star lost the ball four times in this quarter. Offensive rebounds helped Dallas in this phase, however, and Dwight Powell in particular always had a good nose. Thanks to 9 Second Chance Points in two minutes, the hosts took an 82:74 lead into the final section.
Unsurprisingly, CP3 now took over for the Suns, Dallas responded several times from downtown after previously remaining cold. Turnovers continued to be a problem for the Mavs (ending 19-7). A similar one from Powell gave Phoenix the lead again, only Doncic ended a 9-0 run. Despite this, the Suns had the upper hand, a dunk by Biyombo put the visitors 104:99 just under two minutes before the end. But Bridges was the man in the final phase, who plugged defensive holes and repeatedly annoyed Dallas in attack with drives and offensive rebounds.
The Mavs only scored six points in the last seven minutes of the game, too often the Suns forced shots late in the shot clock, and the open threes were no longer made (11/37, 30 percent). The guests brought the game home without much sweat, a three by Paul with 26 seconds left was the final decision. Dallas has now lost nine games in a row to Phoenix, the Mavs last win in November 2019.
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