Dirk Nowitzki scores 27 as Dallas Mavericks thrash Washington Wizards – NBA Recap
On Tuesday night, reigning champions Dallas Mavericks snapped a three game losing streak after beating Washington Wizards 107-98.
The Mavs received a phenomenal boost from Dirk Nowitzki who tallied a game high 27 points while Jason Terry netted 24 coming off the bench. Reserve Rodrigue Beaubois also collected 19 points that included 5 straight early in the
4th frame.
Coach Rick Carlisle was all praise for his Rodrigue’s play after the game.
"From start to finish, you look at offense, defence, decision making, it's one of his best game's he's had, really significant because down the stretch I wanted to keep Kidd out if possible. ... He did a great job, so there's some
real growth there."
Vince Carter chipped in with 14 and Shawn Marion recorded a double-double with 13 boards and 10 points to help Dallas bank their 24th victory of the season.
The game was highly competitive in the opening frame. Mavericks claimed an early 12-6 lead but they couldn’t maintain it. Midway through the frame they were leading with 18-15 margin but Wizards clawed that off by reeling a 9-2
run and switched places with the hosts after taking a 24-20 advantage. Dallas however, brushed that aside with a conclusive 7-2 run and reclaimed their lead by 27-26 at the end of stanza.
The second quarter was tight affair and with 2:18 in hand Mavericks were leading with 52-48. They blasted their way out of the stalemate with a 10-3 run and concluded the segment after taking a 60-51 advantage.
Early in the 3rd quarter, the Mavericks had augmented their lead to 68-56 but Wizards shaved that off with a 10-0 run and converted the double digit deficit into 2 points lead 68-66. Dallas however reclaimed their advantage
in the ensuing passage and capped off the segment with a 83-75 lead.
Dallas took their lead to double digits early in the decisive frame. They maintained it through most of the period and with 03:29 in hand were leading by 104-94. They stretched it further to 107-98 conveniently by the end of last
frame.
Trevor Booker recorded a double-double for Washington with 20 points and 12 boards while John Wall also had a double-double as he collected 18 points and dished out 10 assists. Jordan Crawford poured in 15 and JaVale McGee chipped
in with 12. Reserve Andray Blatche recorded 11 points as Wizards skidded down to a 3 game losing streak after this defeat.
Wizards head coach Randy Wittman was in a sombre mood but he appreciated the effort displayed by his team.
"We came in here and I thought we fought them tooth and nail. Against good teams like this, your margin for error for us, being what we are is a young team, is small."
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