Mavs LIVE Updates: FINAL - Dallas 102, Toronto 98
The Dallas Mavericks (25-19) take on the Toronto Raptors (21-20) tonight at American Airlines Center as they look to capture their 10th win in 11 games.
The last time these two teams met was way back on October 23 in what was just the second game of the season. Despite falling down by 14 points at one point, the Mavs were able to rally and ultimately came away with a 103-95 win in Toronto. Doncic led Dallas with 27 points and 12 assists, and Tim Hardaway Jr. scorched the nets for 25 points on 7-of-11 shooting from deep.
The Raptors didn't have star forward Pascal Siakam in that matchup, but they were still able to put up a gritty effort with all of their starters scoring in double digits. Siakam will be playing in this one.
Can the Mavs keep up their stellar defensive play against a team that has the 11th-best offensive rating in the league? Dallas is fourth overall in defensive rating this season but has been the best defensive team in the NBA over the last 10 games.
The Mavs continue to win at an impressive rate despite Doncic, Hardaway Jr. and Kristaps Porzingis having yet to snap out of their three-point shooting funks this season. A big reason for that is the impressive play of Jalen Brunson, who is having himself a career-year as he gets set to enter unrestricted free agency this summer.
Will Dallas be able to go 3-0 on this current five-game homestand? Will the Raptors avenge their early-season loss with Siakam back in action?
Stay tuned to DallasBasketball.com for live game updates throughout the night.
Starting Lineups
Mavs: Luka Doncic, Jalen Brunson, Dorian Finney-Smith, Maxi Kleber, Kristaps Porzingis
Raptors: Fred VanVleet, OG Anunoby, Scottie Barnes, Pascal Siakam, Precious Achiuwa
First Quarter (6:42): Raptors 14, Mavs 13
This one is going about how we thought it would at the beginning. The Raptors came out with high energy, and their length has given the Mavs some issues. Luka Doncic has five early points and Kristaps Porzingis has four.
END OF FIRST: Raptors 31, Mavs 27
Tim Hardaway Jr. led the Mavs in the first with nine points on 4-of-5 shooting. Doncic scored eight points of his own. OG Anunoby led Toronto with nine points, and the Raptors grabbed six offensive rebounds.
HALFTIME: Mavs 55, Raptors 54
After falling into an early 39-31 hole, the Mavs were able to stay composed and keep the game from getting away from them. Luka Doncic started to look like the guy who made the All-NBA First Team the last two years. He finished the half with 22 points, eight rebounds and four assists in the half.
Third Quarter (4:23): Mavs 74, Raptors 67
Luka Doncic's hot night continues, as he's up to 30 points on 10-of-17 shooting and 8-of-8 from the free throw line. It's the first time Doncic has reached the 30-point mark since November 27.
END OF THIRD: Mavs 83, Raptors 76
Doncic, Porzingis and Hardaway Jr. started to get a little more help from other Mavs players in the third. Jalen Brunson, Dorian Finney-Smith and Josh Green started to show some life. Green finished an alley-oop from Doncic, and he also hit a corner three with 0.9 left in the period.
Doncic leads all Mavs with 30 points heading into the fourth.
Fourth Quarter (4:50): Mavs 93, Raptors 87
Luka Doncic continues to be on display, as he's up to 34 points, 14 rebonds and seven assists on the night. Reggie Bullock hits a huge corner three to put the Mavs up six with a little under five minutes left.
FINAL: Mavs 102, Raptors 98
The Raptors were able to generate a couple of great looks at the end of the game while being down 100-98, but they couldn't convert. Porzingis hit two clutch free throws to close it out, and Doncic finished with a massive stat line of 41 points, 14 rebounds and seven assists on 13-of-24 shooting from the field and 11-of-12 from the free throw line.
