The Mavericks got an up-close view Monday night of why the Boston Celtics have sliced up opponents while carving out the best record in the NBA.
With Jason Tatum and Jaylen Brown combining for 73 points, the Celtics took charge in the second and third quarters, then held on late to defeat the Mavericks 119-110 at American Airlines Center.
It was the Mavericks’ second loss in a row and third in the last four games as they fell to 24-19. The Celtics improved their NBA-leading record to 34-10.
On this particular night, the Celtics’ two superstars were just a little better than the Mavericks’ pair of Luka Dončić and Kyrie Irving, although all four were high on the entertainment value.
Tatum finished with 38 points and 11 rebounds and Brown had 35 points.
Luka was terrific with 33 points, 18 rebounds and 13 assists. It was the 64th triple-double of his career and eighth of this season, as well as a season high in rebounds. Irving finished with 23 points.
But the Mavericks were flustered at times as the Celtics shot more than twice as many free throws (30) as did the Mavericks (14).
“Move on to the next play,” coach Jason Kidd said of what the Mavericks needed to do when the officiating started to unnerve them. “And we’ve talked about it over and over. Sometimes, with maturity, it takes time.
“We’ve been inconsistent in that department where we can get caught up with the officials instead of just staying focused on the game. No one’s going to be perfect, from player to official to coach. So you got to continue just doing your job. I thought we got frustrated and they took advantage.”
The Celtics did not have a great night shooting free throws or three-pointers, which they depend on more than any team in the league.
But the combination of being able to score both at the line and from outside the arc, plus the drives to the basket by Tatum and Brown, put the Mavericks in a difficult spot.
“They’re going to create a lot of threes and they weren’t making them early on and then they did,” Kidd said. “That’s what a good team does. They find their rhythm and they started making shots.”
The Mavericks were down throughout the second half and trailed 100-86 with 8:07 left when Jason Kidd called a timeout.
It was up to the Mavericks to find another gear and the Celtics tried to help them with their lukewarm shooting.
With 5:31 to go, the Mavericks got a break when Dončić got hacked on the arm, had the ball fly out of his hand, got a whistle for the foul, then saw the ball fall through the net. The unexpected three-point play was followed by a Luka three-pointer with 4:59 to go, which trimmed the gap to 103-96.
However, the Celtics don’t have the best record in the NBA by folding in many games. They scored eight of the next 12 points to go ahead 111-100 with 3:11 left.
When Dončić missed a pair of free throws on the next possession, it was apparent this was not going to be a Maverick-friendly finish.
After the game, there was some concern regarding Irving, who said he suffered a right thumb sprain on the first play of the game.
“J.T. (Tatum) went by me and I tried to swipe, and . . . it messed up my thumb,” Irving said. “That’s why I’m wearing this frickin’ brace right now. I honestly want to curse right now.
“But it just comes with the territory in this physical, combative game. It’s going to hurt. I don’t think there’s anybody in the NBA that’s 100 percent night to night. So me, I’m not going to make any excuses. You just got to keep pushing. Our doc said it’s just a right thumb sprain.”
X-rays were negative.
The sting of the loss was negative, too.
“They played a heck of a game,” Irving said. “That second quarter, they took full advantage of playing with a pace we couldn’t match. They were picking on our matchups a little bit, made us think the game on the defensive end.
“It was another test for us against one of the best teams in the league and we came up short. We just can’t allow any external distractions to get in our way because we were in the game most of the way.”
One of those matchups was Brown attacking Luka whenever possible on the perimeter. At one point, a Brown crossover left the Mavericks’ superstar on his backside after the fake.
“Jaylen Brown really attacked me well,” he said. “I saw that video. I can’t lie, that was really nice. I was on the floor praying he wouldn’t make it. But he made it. It was a highlight. But I tried to do my best.
“My defense, I took a really big step this year. But I think Jaylen was really good attacking me. It was a really nice move.”
Kidd came to the defense of Dončić.
“They picked on one guy the whole night and understand, we got to protect him,” he said. “And we just didn’t do that tonight. But Boston is a team that puts you in harm’s way by driving the ball. The two guys had 38 and 35. You’re not going to be in too many ballgames, and we were still right there.
“But unfortunately, when you have those two getting to the free-throw line and being able to shoot the three or being able to drive, it’s just going to put your defense in a bad situation. And a lot of pressure on your offense and tonight we weren’t shooting the ball or finishing at a high clip.”
The Celtics were coming off a 116-107 win at Houston on Sunday night and rested Kristaps Porzingis (knee maintenance) after he scored 32 points against the Rockets.
Porzingis has not played at AAC since the Mavericks traded him to Washington in the 2021-22 season. He was injured season when the Wizards made their only visit to Dallas.
But the Celtics did have Jrue Holiday and Al Horford, both of whom sat out in Houston.
X: @ESefko
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