Mavericks
Rockets bury Mavericks with a 38-12 second quarter, win 128-110
The Houston Rockets beat the Dallas Mavericks 128-110 at Toyota Center on Oct. 21. They won the second quarter 38-12 and led by as many as 37 points. Houston moves to 3-0, and Dallas falls to 1-2.
By the Hoops Nightly Desk · updated 15 h ago01The story of the nightA 38-12 second quarter settles itDallas hung with Houston for one quarter.
Dallas hung with Houston for one quarter. The Rockets led 32-26 after the first. Then the game turned. Houston scored 38 in the second quarter and Dallas scored 12. The Rockets went to halftime up 70-38. Dallas' biggest lead of the night was 5 points, and Houston's was 37. The Mavericks outscored the Rockets in the second half, 38-30 in the third and 34-28 in the fourth. They never got the margin back into reach. Houston's 100-76 lead after three quarters was already more than enough.
02Durant and Smith lead Houston's scoringKevin Durant and Jabari Smith Jr.
Kevin Durant and Jabari Smith Jr. each scored 30 points. Durant shot 10 of 16 and made 8 of 11 free throws. Smith shot 11 of 17, including 4 of 8 from three. Alperen Sengun added 23 points, 10 rebounds and 5 assists, and Houston outscored Dallas by 23 points with him on the floor. Amen Thompson had 16 points, 10 rebounds and 4 assists. Fred VanVleet scored only 6 points but handed out 11 assists with no turnovers, and Houston was plus-19 in his 29.6 minutes. For Dallas, Cooper Flagg scored 32 on 10-of-17 shooting and went 11 of 13 at the line.
03Turnovers and transition tilt the floorDallas turned the ball over 21 times.
Dallas turned the ball over 21 times. Houston turned it over 15. The Rockets turned those mistakes into 32 points, against 19 for Dallas. Houston also won the fast break, 29-17. The Rockets made 16 of 36 threes, while Dallas made 11 of 37. Houston took 32 assists to Dallas' 20 and won the boards, 52-44. Dallas did win the paint, 52-50, and its bench outscored Houston's, 46-23. Both teams shot well overall: Houston made 53.4 percent and Dallas 51.9. The gap came from the extra possessions Dallas gave away.
04What it means for HoustonThe Rockets are 3-0, and this was the kind of game that shows their depth of scoring.
The Rockets are 3-0, and this was the kind of game that shows their depth of scoring. Four starters scored in double figures: Durant, Smith, Sengun and Thompson. Marcus Smart added 10 off the bench in 26.5 minutes and was plus-14. Houston forced 21 turnovers and had 12 fewer giveaways than it took away points off them, so the defense fed the offense. The Rockets also led by 37 at their peak, which means the starters did not have to carry big minutes late. Durant played 37.4 minutes and Smith 36.5.
05What it means for DallasThe Mavericks fall to 1-2 and sit 10th in the West.
The Mavericks fall to 1-2 and sit 10th in the West. Flagg did his part with 32 points, but he also had 4 turnovers. Kyrie Irving scored 15 on 6-of-9 shooting and also turned it over 4 times. P.J. Washington had 10 points and 4 turnovers and was minus-27. The bench was the bright spot. Marcus Sasser scored 17 on 6-of-8 shooting, with 4 of 5 from three, and Naji Marshall had 16 points and 6 assists. Zaccharie Risacher had 5 steals but shot 2 of 7. Dallas will need to clean up the turnovers and its second-quarter drought.
A
A
A
B+
D