DALLAS, TEXAS — The Dallas Mavericks defeated the Atlanta Hawks 118-117 surging on to extend their winning streak to three games and improving their February record to 4-2.
It was a tight game throughout and both teams played aggressively, but the Mavericks win tonight was defined by depth. The Mavericks had six players finish the night with double digit scoring totals which has proven to be the common denominator in most of their wins this month.
The first quarter for the Mavericks started slowly considering during the month of February they experienced an explosion on the offensive end of the court. For the first time this month Dallas converted on less than 50% of their shots to finish the first quarter, but finished the quarter with a 1 point 33-32 lead.
For the most part the Mavericks have been very consistent on offense throughout the current month and have played exceptionally well on offense and struggled more so defensively giving up more than 120 points in their last three games. The inconsistencies the Mavericks experienced made an appearance in the second quarter. The Mavericks production on offense dropped significantly and the team only scored 19 points in the entire second quarter which marked their lowest scoring total in a quarter for the month.
The Mavericks and the Hawks tussled for control of the game throughout the second quarter which led to three ties and two lead changes, but the Hawks were able to pull ahead by 10 points right before the end of the first half of play.
Dallas hasn’t had their fair share of comeback victories this season only doing so once in their comeback victory against the Nuggets that went into overtime January 7th. Since then it has either gone down to the wire or the Mavericks lose the lead early and struggle to comeback with the former being more recent.
The Hawks increased their lead by the middle of the third quarter to 13 points which was the highest lead they would hold against the Mavericks. Dallas was able to fight their way back into the game. Before the beginning of the fourth quarter the Mavericks began to chip away at the Hawks lead and make their comeback push at the right time slicing the Hawks lead from 13 to 6. Dallas got back on track offensively and knocked down 53% of their shots from the field putting their offensive struggles of the second quarter in the rear view.
In the fourth quarter the Mavericks played aggressively on the defensive end and pushed even harder to make their comeback hopes a reality. The Mavericks went on a mini 7-2 run to tie things up with just over six minutes remaining on the clock at 101-101 and then the real push began. The Mavericks officially grabbed the lead again after a big time three pointer from Luka Doncic from 24 feet out and then extended their lead by 6 after Jalen Brunson knocked down another shot from the perimeter. The Hawks clawed their way back into the game after Trae Young knocked down three consecutive free throws from the stripe, a Kyle Huerter driving layup, and a three pointer from Tony Snell to even things up at 109. The back and forth continued until Luka Doncic and Dorian Finney Smith broke the ice scoring two consecutive baskets to put the Mavericks up 4 with little time to spare. The Hawks were able to get to within 1 point of the Mavericks lead after a 32 foot three point shot from Trae Young, but there wasn’t enough time on the clock for the Hawks to stop the Mavericks and their comeback.
A comeback victory against any team at home does wonders for momentum and the Mavericks have gathered some much needed momentum at the right time. What a win and what a way for the Mavericks to extend their winning streak and gain some more momentum as they press on into the thick of the season.
