03/17/2022 at 07:35
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The Mavericks were imposed in New York on the Brooklyn Nets by 111-113 with a triple basket on the buzzer launched this time not by the star of the Dallas, Luca Doncic, but by the new squire of the Slovenian, Spencer Dinwiddie. Since the forward came to the Mavs on Feb. 10 from the Washington Wizards along with Davis Bertans in exchange for Kristaps Porzingis, Dinwiddie has become a staple of the Texans’ machine. It’s the second night in a row that Dinwiddie, who played for the Nets from 2016-2021, has hit a late 3-pointer to give his team the win. On Sunday, the forward hit the three-point basket with which the Mavs beat the Celtics in Boston 92-95.
Although Dinwiddie signed the winning basket, with which he added 22 points in the game, once again the game’s top scorer was Doncic, who narrowly missed a triple double with 37 points, 9 rebounds and 9 assists. In the Nets, who did not have Kyrie Irving because the game was played in New York where vaccination against covid-19 is mandatory to play, Kevin Durant had 23 points, in addition to 6 rebounds and 10 assists. Slovenian point guard Goran Dragic had an outstanding night with 21 points, 3 rebounds and 4 assists while Andre Drummond became the king of the boards with a double double of 14 points and 17 rebounds.
The key to the game was the incessant harassment with which the Mavs’ defense punished Durant, which left him almost dry at various points in the game, such as in the second quarter when the forward only scored 2 points. However, the defense on Durant became a double-edged sword as the Nets adapted and the forward took advantage of the pressure to put the ball on wide players, allowing him to easily reach 10 assists after dishing out 6 alone. in the third quarter.
Despite the final loss, the Nets had the Mavs on the ropes for much of the game. Durant’s effectiveness in the first quarter, in which he scored 9 points, along with the ease with which Drummond dominated the board -10 rebounds in those 12 minutes-, allowed the locals to reach an advantage of up to 10 points, although the period ended with a 30-23 on the marker.
In the second quarter, Mavs coach Jason Kidd demanded a more physical game from his players. The Dallas team responded with more defensive pressure, especially on Durant who found himself surrounded by two defenders every time he had the ball on offense. With Durant nullified, Dragic took over the scoring. The Slovenian had 14 points in the quarter and did not miss any of the shots he took. But the Mavericks responded with Doncic, another 12 points like in the first quarter, and Jalen Brunson, with 10 points. At halftime, the scoreboard reflected the effort made by the Mavs to reduce the local advantage to only 3 points, 61-58.
After the break, the Mavs kept the pressure on Durant and went as far as 2 points up on the scoreboard, 65-67, but the Nets adjusted their game to take advantage of the pressure on Durant. Those from Brooklyn spread out on the track and Durant began to provide assists to the free men. When the third quarter ended, the Nets had gone back on the scoreboard, 91-79.
In the final 12 minutes, the Mavs regained their defensive intensity. And just when the Texans needed Dinwiddie the most, the point guard showed up. While Doncic had to content himself with a modest 4 points in 8.24 minutes of play, Dinwiddie scored 15 in the final period. The point guard’s points allowed the Dallas team to close the gap to tie the game 102-102 with 4.20 minutes to go. In those last 4 long minutes, the two teams exchanged the lead on the scoreboard several times until with 10 seconds to go, with a 111-110 after a triple by Durant, Doncic raised the ball, handed it to Dinwiddie who With 0.4 seconds left, he launched the shot that decided the game in favor of the Mavericks 111-113.
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