SAN ANTONIO – If you’d have told the Mavericks beforehand that they’d shoot 55 percent, including nearly 41 percent from three-point land, they certainly would have taken their chances against San Antonio Wednesday night.
Unfortunately, in a defensive pillow fight, the Mavericks could not turn offensive efficiency into a victory.
The Spurs got a huge night from De’Aaron Fox and dominated the rebounding department to claim a 126-116 victory at Frost Bank Center.
The Mavericks allowed the Spurs to get pretty much whatever they wanted and paid the price for it as San Antonio won the second of these two games in South Texas. The Mavericks had taken Monday’s clash 133-129.
The Mavericks were going for the season sweep of the Spurs but had to settle for winning three of four meetings as they fell to 33-34. They remain 2 1/2 games up on Phoenix for the final Western Conference play-in spot.
After leading for much of the first half on Wednesday, the Mavs fell behind in the third quarter as Fox caught fire. When rookie Stephon Castle completed a three-point play with 4:38 remaining in the fourth quarter, the Spurs had a 115-101 advantage. The Mavericks never made a serious dent in that deficit down the stretch.
Fox finished with 32 points, 11 assists and nine rebounds, while Keldon Johnson had 18 points off the bench for the Spurs, as did Jeremy Sochan.
“We were aggressive, but on the defensive end, we couldn’t stop them,” coach Jason Kidd said. “We just couldn’t get stops. It’s real simple.
“They attacked everybody. They just put their head down and drove it. Our rim protection is limited right now and we just have to do a better job and we will.”
The Mavericks got 19 points and six assists from Brandon Williams, who returned after missing Monday’s game with a calf injury. He led seven Mavericks in double figures.
But defensively, there were issues. The Mavericks gave up 66 points in the paint and the Spurs shot 53 percent from the field. And their 47-32 rebounding margin gave them a big edge in shots (94-82). In addition, after the Mavericks forced eight first-quarter turnovers, the Spurs only threw it away eight more times in the final three frames.
Fox led a parade through the gut of the Mavericks’ defense.
“He’s De’Aaron Fox, he’s one of the fastest guys in this league,” Williams said. “He’s proved that. To go against a guy like that defensively and offensively is going to help me in the long run.”
As for the general inability to keep the Spurs from attacking the paint, Williams said: “We just got to be active on the ball. We’re small, so having each other’s back when they drive is really key.”
As the Mavericks found out, if they aren’t completely tied together, it’s hard to get stops.
“We just played them and we knew kind of what their game plan was,” said Dante Exum, who had 17 points, including 11 to start the third quarter when the Mavericks were hanging with the Spurs. “(We just needed) a better understanding of being more aggressive on that rather than catching them late and having them overpowering us and getting layups.”
The Mavericks actually showed early that they weren’t going to go away without a battle. A 22-4 rush that crossed into the second quarter landed the Mavericks a 31-20 advantage and they kept the hammer down through the rest of the first half until a flurry of Spurs’ three-pointers at the end left the Mavericks trailing 64-62 at the half. Neither team could stop the other, obviously.
And the return of Williams was a boost for the Mavericks. He played 28 minutes off the bench and his quickness helped keep the Mavericks in the game, particularly in the first half.
The injury list for the Mavericks remained long: While Williams returned, still out were Anthony Davis, Daniel Gafford, Jaden Hardy, Dereck Lively II, Kyrie Irving, Kai Jones, O-Max Prosper and P.J. Washington.
However, Washington was upgraded to questionable for Wednesday’s game although he ultimately was ruled out.
“It’s good,” Kidd said. “Hopefully he has a couple more good days here and he can get back to playing.”
The Mavericks haven’t had any real practice time, partly because of the busy slate of games and also because there simply are not enough healthy players to have scrimmages.
But the preparation for game hasn’t changed all that much, Kidd said.
“Nothing’s changed, just the last names,” he said. “The ball has to touch the paint and something good happens in this league. And that’s what we’re doing. We’re driving it. We’re 6-8 and (smaller), so the ability to have the ball touch the paint, catch and shoot or redrive is something that this league does at a high level and that’s what we’re going.
“As much as you look at the Bostons of the world shooting 50 threes, for us, it’s about taking the right shot and we’ve done that since training camp. And we continue to do that 66 games in. If we’re wide-open, if we turn it down, can we get a better one. But the ball has to touch the paint and that’s what the guys are doing.”
Briefly: Spurs’ acting head coach Mitch Johnson said that 7-3 Victor Wembanyama, the Spurs’ All-Star center who is out for the remainder of the season with blood clot complications in his shoulder, is staying engaged with the team. “Wishing he could be out there,” Johnson said of Wembanyama’s attitude. “Anytime he can interact with his teammates and you see him on the bench, very engaged – doing everything he can other than throw a jersey on, so it’s awesome to have him around.” That should sound familiar to the Mavericks, who have Anthony Davis, Dereck Lively II and others along for the ride on this trip for moral support . . . The Mavericks had just four offensive rebounds, turning them into only four second-chance points. The Spurs had 13 offensive boards that led to 16 second-chance points . . . The Mavericks will head to Houston to play the Rockets Friday to wrap up this three-game trip.
X: @ESefko
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