Jason Kidd's triple-double helped the Mavericks to their third straight victory over Tyreke Evans and the Kings. (AP Photo/Robert Durell)Game number 80 of the 2010 season, second night of a back-to-back, oldest team in the NBA - there were many things working against the Dallas Mavericks (53-27) as they tried to secure the second seed in the Western Conference Saturday night in Sacramento. But none of those things seemed to have any affect as Dallas started the game off strong and never let up, sustaining their energy-level all evening long against the Sacramento Kings (25-55). This allowed Mavs' starters to get some rest after guys played heavy minutes Friday night in Portland.
"We talked this morning about getting a big emotional win [Friday in Portland] and not having a letdown," Dirk Nowitzki said. "We came out and set the tone early, pushing the ball and building the lead. And we kept making timely shots when we needed them."
Nowitzki was the main culprit in the Mavericks' dominating performance. The former NBA MVP scored 39 points on 12-20 shooting (60 percent), grabbed seven rebounds and seemed to make the much-needed shot any time the Kings made a run. Nowitzki scored 22 of his game-high 39 in the third quarter, including the final 13 points, in which Dallas took their largest lead of the game at 100-75. He did it inside, getting to the free-throw line 13 times on the night, and outside as he was 2-2 on 3's.
"We just let [Nowitzki] have easy shots and we weren't contesting shots in the third quarter," Kings power-forward Carl Landry said.
Landry was Sacramento's best scoring option on the evening, leading the Kings with 30 points on 12-16 shooting. Rookie Tyreke Evans was second on the team in scoring with 27 and also added eight rebounds and six assists.
Along with Nowitzki's impressive performance, Jason Kidd had some statistical magic of his own. Kidd scored 11 points, grabbed 10 rebounds and dished out 14 assists for his second triple-double of the season. Kidd was a driving force in the Mavs solid effort against the Kings, pushing the tempo whenever he could and using his quick hands (two steals for the game) to force Sacramento turnovers.
"It was a solid win for us, every one counts and we need them all," Coach Rick Carlisle said. "Each game has a critical meaning for the playoffs. Our guys are focused on that."
This was a game Dallas had to win with four teams nipping at their heels for the second seed in the Western Conference. The Denver Nuggets lost to the San Antonio Spurs tonight, so the Mavericks hold the tiebreaker over the Nuggets no matter what happens the rest of the season. Regardless of other team's wins and losses, Dallas continues to be in control of their own destiny as two more wins will assure them the second-seed in the playoffs and home-court advantage up until a possible matchup with the Los Angeles Lakers.
Three-Point Barrage
A big factor in Saturday's win was the Mavericks ability to drain 3's at an amazing clip. Dallas made 13 of 21 attempts from behind the arc, equaling their total for 3's made in their previous two games combined. Four starters made at least two 3's each, and Jason Terry (25 points) led the way off the bench going 3 for 4 from deep.
"You want teams to shoot more 3-point shots as opposed to getting inside when you're a smaller team like we are, but when they shoot 62 percent on 3's it's hard to mount much of a comeback," Kings Coach Paul Westphal said.
What's Next
Dallas takes a breather before traveling to Los Angeles to take on the Clippers Monday night.
The Clippers have lost seven of their last eight games overall, but are coming off a 107-104 victory over the Golden State Warriors Saturday night. L.A. is 28-52 overall this season, but are over .500 at home (20-19). The Mavericks are 2-0 so far this season against the Clippers and won the last meeting 106-96 on Mar. 23.
Tip-off is at 9:30 p.m. and can be seen locally on Fox Sports Southwest.
News and Notes:
- After missing his previous 17 shots from the floor (longest consecutive streak of any Mavericks' player this season), DeShawn Stevenson made a three-pointer at the beginning of the third quarter to end the dubious streak. Stevenson finished the game 2-4 from the field (2-3 from 3-point range), but overall this season he's shooting only 17.5 percent on 3's and 26 percent overall.
- Dirk Nowitzki broke his previous record of 60 straight made free-throws in the third quarter and finished the game having made 67 in a row from the charity stripe.
- Nowitzki also scored 39 points after scoring 40 Friday night against the Blazers. 79 points over the span of two games is the highest total of Nowitzki's regular season career.
- Jason Kidd now has 105 triple-doubles for his career, third in NBA history behind Magic Johnson (138) and Oscar Robertson (181).
- Dallas won all four meetings this season against Sacramento and have won seven straight against the Kings overall.
(Portions of this article were taken from The Associated Press)
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