LOS ANGELES –That meek and mild Dallas Mavericks’ team that fell behind by 29 points and lost Game 1 of this best-of-seven
series against the Los Angeles Clippers fortunately was no where to be found on Tuesday.
Instead, the Mavs came out in Game 2 like this was a heavyweight prize fight, and they promptly delivered enough blows and body punches to knock out the Clippers, 96-93, at Crypto.com Arena to even this series at 1-1. In playing an aggressive style while getting production from a number of players, the Mavs snatched homecourt advantage away from the Clippers as the series now shifts to Dallas for Games 3 and 4 on Friday and Sunday.
The Mavs got their usual strong games from Luka Dončić.and Kyrie Irving, who combined for 55 points. But when the Clippers were rallying and the arena was rocking, it was Maxi Kleber who stepped up and buried a cold-blooded three-pointer with 2:08 remaining after receiving a pass from Dončić that gave the Mavs some breathing room and an 87-81 lead.
Dončić followed with a three-pointer of his own, and the Mavs suddenly were nursing a comfortable 90-81 lead with just 1:26 remaining.
“Maxi was big,” coach Jason Kidd said. “The catch-and-shoot, the double-teams. Again, we’ve seen this all season when they’re going to take the ball 
out of Luka’s or Kai’s hands.
“Luka is making the right plays, he’s accepting the double-teams, and the trust that those guys have with one another (is solid). Not just Luka and Maxi, but those five that are on the floor.”
Playing in his first NBA playoff series, P.J. Washington also had some momentum-shifting moments for the Mavs. Washington scored 10 of his 18 points in the fourth quarter, including two free throws that gave Dallas a 92-86 lead with 34.3 seconds remaining.
Then, with 20.5 seconds left, Kidd won a critical coach’s challenge after Irving was whistled for a foul on a bucket by James Harden. The challenge by Kidd kept the Mavs ahead, 93-90, and prevented Harden from attempting a free throw and making the game
even closer.
“We talked about it,” Kidd said. “I had two timeouts (left), so we kind of felt we could burn one on the challenge.
“Kai said he hit the ball, so you’ve got to trust. It turned out to be right, and that was a big challenge.”
The good tidings kept on coming for the Mavs as Irving made a free throw with 12 seconds left. But when he missed the second one, Kleber chased it down, leading to Irving getting intentionally fouled again.
This time Irving fired in both free throws with 7.2 seconds left to give the Mavs a 96-90 lead and put this game on ice.
“Once that third quarter and that fourth quarter hit, I feel like our physicality wore them down a little bit,” said Irving, who scored 23 points. “I think it comes from the regular season preparations and also being well-conditioned and pushing ourselves and knowing what we have left in the tank.”
Dončić finished with 32 points, six rebounds and nine assists, and kept making big basket after big basket while keeping the Clippers at bay. He now has 19 games in his postseason career where he’s scored 30 or more points in his first 30 career playoff games, and 10 of those have come against the Clippers.
“It’s basketball at the end of the day,” Dončić said. “I did this my whole life, basically.
“I just try to have fun out there. The intensity is way higher, and I just go out there and play hard.”
Dončić also picked up a technical foul with 0.7 seconds left in the third quarter, and Harden flipped in the free throw as the Clippers toted a narrow 66-65 lead into the fourth quarter.
“You got to trust him and let him be him and allow him to grow,” Irving said. “He’s very young still, very well accomplished, but I know his overall goal is to win a championship, and it’s the same for me.
“When he’s emotional, he’s honest, and I appreciate that. I’d rather be out there with someone that’s emotional and wants to do better for themselves and for the team than someone that’s quiet or just allowing things to happen.”
Tuesday was the first game for Clippers forward Kawhi Leonard since March 31, meaning he missed the previous nine games due to inflammation in his surgically repaired right knee before playing in Game 2. But the Mavs had been awaiting his arrival and wanted to show they could deal effectively with his two-way talents.
“We try to keep the same game plan no matter what,” forward Josh Green said. “The coach has done a great job for the last week, and all the guys have bought in. We’ve been doing this for a week now.”
Leonard was held to 15 points in 35 minutes on 7-of-17 shots, while Harden and George led the Clippers with 22 points apiece.
In the end, the Mavs joined the Indiana Pacers – who won in Milwaukee on Tuesday – as the only teams to win a road game thus far in this year’s playoffs.
“Luka made some tough shots, Kyrie made some tough shots,” Clippers coach Tyronn Lue said. “We talked about before the series that they are going to be able to do that.
“But overall to hold this team to 96 points, that’s a really great defensive night. We just got to do a better job of scoring the basketball.”
Meanwhile, the Mavs’ role players who were criticized for not doing enough in Game 1 definitely came to play in Game 2. In addition to very efficient play from Washington and Kleber, Derrick Jones Jr. (10 points, seven rebounds) and rookie Dereck Lively II (seven points, nine rebounds) also made their presence felt, although the Mavs lost guard Tim Hardaway Jr. to a right ankle sprain.
Kidd credited his team for muscling up and holding the Clippers to a season-low 36.8 percent shooting. Also, that Clippers squad that converted 18-of-36 three-pointers in Game 1 was just 8-of-30 from downtown on Tuesday.
“It’s about players making plays, and tonight we were fortunate enough to make enough plays on both ends to find a way to w
in on the road,” Kidd said. “But we’re not afraid of physicality.
“What we were a little bit disappointed in Game 1 with was that we weren’t physical. Maybe (it was) the rust or maybe the time off.
“But again, tonight we started off and we played 48 minutes of physical basketball and we found a way to win.”
Kidd called it a throwback type of game to the 1990s when the games were very physical and the scoring was very low.
“Obviously, they punched us in the mouth coming into Game 1,” Washington said. “So we just wanted to respond tonight, and I feel like we set the tone defensively and with our aggression out there. I feel like we did a great job and I’m just glad we came in here and got a win.”
X: @DwainPrice
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