A fourth quarter run by the Mavericks proved to be the deciding factor in this game as the Hawks were unable to complete the comeback. The 7-2 run early in the fourth quarter extended the Mavericks lead to ten (their largest of the game). Their lead went up to as much as 14 points before the Hawks were able to go on a late run to for a chance at a late comeback.
The Mavericks had six players in double digits for points as Luka Dončić led the way with 27. Porzingis was behind Doncic with 24.
Hawks turnovers helped the Mavericks gain this big lead and is something head coach Lloyd Pierce alluded to after the game.
“We started off with two turnovers,” said Pierce “That was the stretch. No shots on offense and a hot guy was able to keep going on that sequence.” The hot guy he is alluding to is Tim Hardaway Jr. who finished the game with 22 points.
Defense on Hawks star player and guard Trae Young played a huge role in the Mavericks win as well. Throughout the game, Young was picked up full court by Mavericks defenders and double teamed as soon as he crossed half court.
Young finished with 21 points but admits the defense caught him and other players off guard.
“When they kind of did that…we weren’t necessarily expecting that,” said Young. “You could kind of tell that early on.”
The Mavericks were the ones jumping on top early as they were led by their star player Doncic. The Mavericks 11-4 run sparked by Doncic forced the Hawks to call an early timeout.
The Mavericks were able to build off of that run and maintain the lead while the Hawks managed to stay in striking distance. A big reason the Hawks stayed in the game was due to bench player, forward Danilo Gallinari who added 10 points.
The Mavericks only led by four at the end of the first quarter as the score was 26-22.
The second quarter proved to be favorable for the Hawks. Forward John Collins went baseline and converted on a reverse layup to tie the game at 33 with less than nine minutes to go in the quarter. While both teams exchanged buckets to keep the game tied, it was Young or as many know him as, “Ice Tray,” who put the Hawks on top. Young made his first basket of the game which gave the Hawks a 42-39 lead.
While the Mavericks were keeping themselves in the game, Young broke the tie once again, this time making a driving floater putting the Hawks ahead 47-45.
The Hawks led by six points after Gallinari made a layup off the drive to lead 56-50.
Dončić wanted to give his team a late bucket to take some momentum into halftime. Six seconds remained as he hit a stepback three pointer cutting the Hawks lead to three going into halftime. He led all scorers at halftime with 17 points.
Porzingis was the culprit of a 6-0 run that led to the Hawks calling an early timeout.
After Collins hit the first basket of the third quarter for both teams, Porzingus hit a two pointer on the other end to bring the Hawks lead to four. After another bucket on the next possession by the Mavericks, Porzingis dunked on the next Mavericks possession tying the game at 59.
The Mavericks were able to take the lead but foul play hurt them, putting the Hawks in the bonus midway in the third quarter.
This gave the Hawks much needed points and momentum as Young made a three pointer to give the Hawks a 72-71 lead with 4:36 to go in the third quarter.
Hardaway Jr. stepped up big for the Mavericks in the third quarter. Hardaway scored nine points as he was able to get the hot hand from three point land.
His play gave the Mavericks a 88-83 lead going into the fourth quarter.
A 7-2 run to begin the fourth quarter gave the Mavericks an eight point lead. A three pointer by Josh Richardson started the run. Hardaway Jr. and guard Jalen Brunson, who gave the Mavericks valuable play off the bench, added two layups to put them up by 10.
The Hawks called a timeout after a made layup with 9:31 to go in the fourth quarter. The score was 95-87.
With less than three minutes remaining in the game, the Hawks had one more run left in them trailing 111-101.
The Hawks were able to get the Mavericks lead down to three after a Mavericks turnover and three pointer by Young with 42.3 seconds to go.
As the score remained 115-112, Dončić dribbled the shot clock down and drove past Hawks defenders for a layup. Doncic’s layup went off the front of the rim before Porzigis tipped it back in to make it a five point game with less than 30 seconds to go.
That is all the Mavericks needed in this game to seal the deal as late free throws and two layups by Young ended the Hawks chances of winning.
Collins tied a career high in points with 35.
The Hawks will seek to rebound as the host the Jazz tonight at home.
