Mission accomplished as Mavs secure home court advantage

Friday was a mission accomplished type of night for the Dallas Mavericks.

Prior to this season, the Mavs had a goal of securing a playoff spot, but securing it with home court advantage in the first round of postseason play. They were able to check that box with a convincing 128-78 triumph over the Portland Trail Blazers.

Now, regardless of who Dallas meets in the first round of the playoffs, all the Mavs have to do is just win their home games and they’ll advance to the second round of the playoffs.

“That’s a great compliment to those guys in that locker room to be able to do that, to win 51 games, to have home court before the season is over,” coach Jason Kidd said. “That’s something that from the start of the season you want and try to get if you believe you’re a playoff team is to have home court.

“It’s one step of showing we are getting better as a team.”

The Mavs are 51-30 on the season and have won 16 of their last 21 games. They will close out the regular season Sunday night at 8:30 at American Airlines Center against the San Antonio Spurs.

Here are our five takeaways from the 50-point blowout win over the Blazers.

DONCIC RECEIVED ANOTHER TECHNICAL FOUL: Near the end of the first quarter, Luka Doncic was upset that no foul was called when he was clearly fouled by Elijah Holmes. When Doncic complained too vehemently, referee Tony Brothers charged him with a technical foul. It was the 16^th technical foul of the season for Doncic. And by NBA rules, that comes with an automatic one-game suspension. Unless Friday’s technical foul is rescinded by the NBA, Doncic must sit out Sunday’s regular season finale against the San Antonio Spurs. By the way, Brothers is the same referee who tagged coach Jason Kidd with two technical fouls and his only ejection of the season during the Mavs’ April 1 game against the Washington Wizards.

POWELL WAS PERFECT: Dwight Powell continued his trend of racking up one impressive performance after another. Against the Blazers, all Powell needed was one just half to show how effective he’s been in the paint in recent months. In the first half, Powell was a perfect 7-of-7 from the floor and scored 16 points. The seven made field goals without a miss are the most by Powell without a miss in any half during his eight-year career. He was 6-of-6 from the floor in one half in seven different games prior to Friday. Powell finished the game with 18 points, three rebounds, two assists and a blocked shot. With solid help from Powell, the Mavs wound up shooting a sizzling 53.2 percent from the field. And they are a perfect 23-0 this season when they shoot at least 50 percent from the floor.

WHAT A QUARTER FOR DONCIC: Once again, Luka Doncic was impressive in running the show for the Mavs. The fourth-year point guard got the Mavs off to a tremendous start with 13 points, eight rebounds and four assists in a first quarter that ended with Dallas holding a commanding 36-13 lead. But judging by what he accomplished in the third quarter, Doncic was just getting started. In the third quarter alone, the three-time All-Star poured in an amazing 25 points. That’s the most points Doncic has scored in one quarter besides the 28 points he tallied in the first quarter of the Feb. 10 game against the Los Angeles Clippers. Doncic finished the night with 39 points, 11 rebounds and seven assists. He was 12-of-21 from the field and 7-of-14 from three-point range. In the third quarter Doncic was 8-of-10 from the floor and 6-of-7 from downtown.

DEFENSE RULED THE DAY: Although it’s not getting much play outside of the DFW area, the Mavs showed once again why they are one of the top five teams in the NBA in defensive efficiency. In a game that was basically over not long after it started, the 78 points the Blazers scored are the fewest the Mavs have allowed in a game this season. And the 50-point margin of victory was their largest of the season. The Blazers shot just 37.3 percent from the field and misfired on 25 of their 32 attempts from behind the three-point line. More remarkable, Portland scored only 34 points in the second half when it was just 13-of-40 from the floor, including 4-of-15 from downtown. The Mavs tallied 39 points and were 12-of-17 from the field and 10-of-14 from three-point land – in the third quarter. And in the fourth quarter, the Mavs held the Blazers to just nine points on 2-of-16 shooting in a totally dominating performance.

FINNEY-SMITH IN THE SHOOTING GALLERY: With so much attention being paid to Luka Doncic – and rightfully so – forwards Dorian Finney-Smith and Reggie Bullock have resorted to acting like a kid on Christmas morning with all the wide open looks they’re receiving from the three-point stripe. “Me and Reggie be over there laughing about it,” Finney-Smith said. “When they’re trapping Luka that’s our time to get our shots. (Friday) I made them. Next game, (Bullock will) probably be the hot one.” Finney-Smith scored 15 points and was 5-of-7 from three-point territory. “I’m just taking the shots when I’m open,” he said. “They were trapping Luka, so I got a bunch of good looks.” One of the NBA’s top perimeter defenders, Finney-Smith also finished with seven rebounds, a pair of steals and a blocked shot.

Twitter: @DwainPrice