By ADRIAN STEWART CO
Dallas Mavericks caught Utah Jazz flatfooted as they scored a 111-103 victory in the 2020-2021 NBA Season on Monday night (Tuesday in the Philippines) at the American Airlines Center in Dallas, Texas.
Luka Doncic fell short of triple-double with 31 points, nine rebounds and eight assists, while Dorian Finney-Smith added 23 markers as the Mavericks improved to 28-21.
Jalen Brunson chipped in 20 markers, while Josh Richardson and Tim Hardaway Jr. contributed 17 and 16 points apiece for Dallas, which have won its last five matches.
Holding to a 27-25 lead after the opening quarter, the Mavericks widened the gap from the Jazz in the second period behind Doncic, Robinson and Brunson for a 50-42 halftime edge.
The lead grew further for the Mavericks in the second half with Doncic, Finney-Smith and Hardaway draining their baskets for an 87-69 upperhand after 36 minutes.
Mike Conley top-scored with 28 points, while Filipino-American guard Jordan Clarkson, Donovan Mitchell and Bojan Bogdanovic added 16 markers apiece as the Jazz fell to 38-12.
Meanwhile, Jeff Green converted two go-ahead free throws with 3.2 seconds remaining as the Brooklyn Nets (35-16) escaped with a 114-112 win over New York Knicks (25-26).
Green finished the match with 23 points, including two triples, while Kyrie Irving added 40 points to go along with seven assists for the Nets, which were without James Harden, Kevin Durant and Blake Griffin.
Gary Trent Jr., on the other hand, drained game-winning triple at the buzzer as Toronto Raptors (20-30) scored with 103-101 victory over the Washington Wizards (17-32). He finished with 16.
In other results, Cleveland Cavaliers (18-32) prevailed over San Antonio Spurs (24-24), 125-101; Minnesota Timberwolves (13-28) edged Sacramento Kings (22-29), 116-106; and Detroit Pistons (15-35) toppled Oklahoma City Thunder (20-30), 132-108.
BOX SCORE:
DALLAS 111 – Doncic 31, Finney-Smith 23, Brunson 20, Richardson 17, Hardaway 16, Powell 4, Kleber 0, Melli 0.
UTAH 103 – Conley 28, Clarkson 16, Bogdanovic 16, Mitchell 16, Gobert 14, Niang 6, Ingles 3, O’Neale 2, Favors 2.
Quarterscores: 27-25, 50-42, 87-69, 111-103./ASC, WDJ