The major absence of injuries may have diminished the appeal of Sunday’s Western Conference playoff rematch between the Dallas Mavericks (7-7) and the Oklahoma City Thunder (11-3) at the Paycom Center, but the Mavs were simply desperate looking for another victory. Dallas wore that desperation like their Sunday best (at least for three and a half quarters) as seven Mavericks scored in double figures en route to a 121-119 victory over the Thunder.

PJ Washington led the way for the Mavs with 27 points and 17 rebounds in the win, while Kyrie Irving scored 23 and added six assists. Naji Marshall and Jaden Hardy each scored 13. Shai Gigeous-Alexander lived in the paint and collected 36 points and eight assists in the loss.

Dallas was without Luka Dončić, who was out with a knee contusion, while the Thunder were without Chet Holmgren (hip fracture), Alex Caruso (also a hip injury), Jaylin Williams (hamstring), Isaiah Hartenstein (hand fracture) and Nikola Topic (ACL).

Washington posed a threat early, hitting its first three 3-point attempts in the first four minutes of the game after failing to record a bucket record in Friday’s 110-93 win over the San Antonio Spurs. to miss him the previous five. Washington outscored the Mavericks with 13 points and five rebounds in the first quarter against the Thunder.

Hardy and Marshall planned to attack the paint off the bench to keep Dallas’ momentum going, and the court was open for business with Oklahoma City missing so many pieces on the interior. Hardy raced past the Thunder defense in secondary transition for his second bucket of the game, putting the Mavs up 32-30 with 1:50 left in the first. Marshall made a quick turnaround two possessions later to give Dallas a 35-30 lead as part of a tight 10-3 run late in the quarter. The Mavericks took a 39-34 lead after one game. The first quarter was Dallas’ highest scoring quarter so far this season.

Dallas played with slightly more tempo than usual in Dončić’s absence, with head coach Jason Kidd periodically urging the team to push the ball up the floor in search of easier buckets. Dallas entered the game ranked 29th in the NBA in location-effective field goal percentage (Loc eFG%), an advanced statistic that measures the quality of shots generated.

The Mavs took a 66-58 lead into halftime after solid play from Marshall, Daniel Gafford and Quentin Grimes. The trio combined for 17 of the team’s 26 points in the second. Shai Gilgeous-Alexander shot 8-of-10 from the field for 20 points to keep the Thunder connected in the first half.

A five-point trip down the floor early in the third gave the Mavericks their largest lead to that point, when Dereck Lively missed the free throw on a three-point play opportunity. Washington tipped the loose ball back to Grimes at the top of the key for Grimes’ second 3-pointer of the night, and Dallas led 73-63 with just over 10 minutes remaining.

But without Dončić and his unique ability to put a boot on the opponent’s throat, Dallas couldn’t put away the Thunder. The Mavs led 97-92 after three.

We had a Spencer Dinwiddie sighting early in the fourth, and it couldn’t have come at a more opportune time. With a lineup of Hardy, Grimes, Dinwiddie, Washington and Lively on the floor, Dinwiddie rose for contested 3-pointers on consecutive possessions and splashed them both to give Dallas a 103-92 lead and a Thunder timeout to enforce with 10 minutes to play. .

Kyrie Irving pulled a similar trick out of his bag, going over Cason Wallce’s outstretched arm for a huge 3-ball from the left wing, extending the Mavs’ lead to 112-98 midway through the fourth.

Photo by Zach Beeker/NBAE via Getty Images

Washington’s biggest moment may have been his lean on an offensive rebound as the shot clock expired with 2:45 to play. Jalen Williams had just hit back-to-back three-pointers to pull the Thunder to 114-109, and Dallas needed a lift in the worst way. After Irving’s leaner failed to make contact with the rim, Dereck Lively II tapped out the offensive board to Washington, who hurriedly made an off-balance shot from the elbow. It fell and the Mavs were able to breathe again as the seconds started ticking away.

It wasn’t the prettiest finish, as a few crucial turnovers and poor defensive possession in the final minute of the game threatened to spoil all the good work the Mavs had done up to that point, but Dallas did just enough to preserve the outcome . These are the main takeaways from the much-needed victory.

Crucial contributions from the bench

Hardy and Marshall set the tone for the Mavs’ second unit in the first quarter. Marshall and Gafford did the same in the second with their length and strength near the basket. Dallas needed all hands on deck without Dončić, and for the most part, they delivered. The Mavericks’ bench outscored the Thunder reserves 27-12 in the first half and 50-25 on the night.

It’s also hard to overstate the importance of Dinwiddie’s ten points down the stretch.

The prevailing thought going into the game may have been that Kyrie Irving and Klay Thompson could do the heavy lifting in Dončić’s absence, but it was refreshing to see how many Mavericks left their fingerprints on the game at different times. Thompson had a tough night shooting the ball in Oklahoma City, going just 1-for-11 from the field and 1-for-8 from 3-point range for five points in the win.

SGA gets his

After pouring in 20 in the first half, the Mavericks made more of a point of trapping Gilgeous-Alexander in the second half to get the ball out of his hands, but he still made his first two attempts of the third quarter. His acrobatic drive to get to the rim under Gafford turned into a three-point play with four minutes left in the third, bringing the Thunder within five, down 88-83 at the time.

Gilgeous-Alexander and Jalen Williams combined for 19 points in the fourth quarter.

Home Affairs

It took a completely depleted Oklahoma City frontcourt for the Mavs to finally dominate an opponent on the boards. Dallas defeated Oklahoma City 62-38 in the victory. Washington led the way for the Mavs on the boards with 17 – a new career high. Daniel Gafford also posted a double-double of 11 points and 12 rebounds in the win.

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