With Rangers’ slugger Adolis Garcia watching from the front row, the Mavericks leaned heavily on their own home-run hitter Tuesday night.
And Luka Dončić showed that he can help win a game with his glove, too, so to speak.
Dončić made a hard-nosed, hustling defensive play early in the fourth quarter that ignited the Mavericks in a grind-it-out, foul-plagued game that they finally survived, 121-115, over the Houston Rockets at American Airlines Center.
It was not exactly like the Rangers taking down the Astros on the way to winning the World Series, but it was still a major night for the Mavericks.
They had lost three of four and wanted to start a three-game home stand the right way.
Mission accomplished.
The ignition came from Luka, but not in the conventional way. He got down on the floor and dug out a loose ball in traffic that led to a layup Derrick Jones Jr. and tied the score at 90 with under 10 minutes left.
From there, it was a matter of will and Luka’s play seemed to energize the crowd and his teammates. A wraparound pass from Luka to Jones netted a three-pointer with 7:30 to go and a 97-96 Mavericks’ lead.
“I think I’ve been good defensively,” Dončić said afterward. “I know people are not going to say that. But I think my team knows that, coaches know that. I think we’ve proven that, not just me, as a team.”
Luka cited energy, reading the game and using his hands more as details he’s paid more attention to on the defensive end.
At least one of his teammates made it clear what he thought of Luka battling for the loose ball.
“For those that are not him, I hope it motivates them to let them know that our No. 1 guy is diving on the floor for loose balls,” said Jones, who had a strong showing in his first game coming off the bench. “If he’s not too good to do it, then nobody is. Everybody needs to get on the floor and get on the ball.”
Nobody needs to tell coach Jason Kidd. He’s seen it firsthand and knows how much work Luka has put in on the defensive end.
“Sometimes, we take him for granted and we shouldn’t,” Kidd said. “He’s about winning, too. It just happens that he’s a walking triple double. You guys (media members) haven’t really talked about his defense – he’s competing defensively. He’s taking the challenge. But when you’re that good, someone has to pick at something. For him to get on the floor, it just shows that he’s all about winning, too.”
They moved it to 105-100 on a Luka spin move. And, while he prides himself on improved defense, it was still his offense that was mesmerizing. He had a smooth 41 points and was ably assisted by Kyrie Irving’s 27 points, including a three-pointer with under 5 minutes left that put the Mavericks up 108-100.
The Rockets never got close enough to have a chance to tie or take the lead down the stretch.
Luka capped things with a shot-clock defying hook shot from near the free-throw line. What was he thinking when he pulled the trigger on that one?
“That it was going in,” he said.
It summed up perfectly a well-played fourth quarter for the Mavericks.
This was the final in-season tournament game for both teams. The Mavericks (11-6) finished with a 2-2 record in the inaugural event. They were eliminated from contention for the quarterfinals before Tuesday’s game.
The Rockets meanwhile, needed a win to punch their ticket into the quarterfinals. But they, too, ended group play with a 2-2 record (8-7 overall).
After the game, the Mavericks found out their two games during the In-Season Tournament playoffs would be against Utah and Portland.
They will play the Jazz on Dec. 6 at AAC at 7:30 p.m. and the Blazers in Portland on Dec. 8 at 9 p.m., Dallas time.
The Rockets still have yet to win a road game this season (0-6). That’s a bad sign considering Tuesday was the first in a line of eight games, six of which will be on the road for the Rockets.
The Mavericks were down for much of the third quarter even though Dončić was having a big surge. When Aaron Holiday hit a three-pointer with 2:25 left in the frame, the Rockets were up 79-73.
The gap would grow to 86-77 before Kyrie Irving, who was quiet for most of the first three quarters, came to life with the Mavericks’ last seven points of the period to bring them within 88-84 going into the fourth.
The Rockets came in with a new reputation for their defense and, as advertised, they limited the Mavericks to 54 first-half points and a four-point lead.
One of the bright spots for the Mavericks was that they welcomed back center Dereck Lively II to the lineup after missing the game in Los Angeles against the Clippers with a back contusion.
It was a nice sight to see for Kidd.
“Dereck is one that (is big) defensively, being able to rebound, change shots and then offensively being able to put pressure on the rim,” he said. “And then a lot of times we don’t talk about it, but the playmaking, especially when Kai and Luka are being double-teamed, being able to read the defense to make the right pass or to be able go finish at the rim, those are things that we miss anytime he’s been out.”
Lively finished with eight points, five rebounds and two blocks, making all four of his shots in 28 minutes on the floor.
X: @ESefko
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