Luka Doncic scored 13 of his game-high 26 points in the fourth quarter Friday night as the visiting Dallas Mavericks pulled away from the New York Knicks, 99-86.
The Mavericks played without head coach Rick Carlisle, who was scheduled to coach in his 1,500th game Friday night before he tested positive for COVID-19 earlier in the day. Assistant Jamahl Mosley filled in for Carlisle, who was vaccinated in January and said he hoped the test would prove to be a false positive.
Doncic added eight rebounds and seven assists as the Mavericks overcame a 13-point second-quarter deficit to win their third straight game.
Jalen Brunson scored 15 points off the bench while former Knicks players Kristaps Porzingis and Tim Hardaway Jr. each had 14 points. Dorian Finney-Smith added 12 points and Josh Richardson netted 11.
Alec Burks scored 20 points off the bench for the Knicks, who have lost three straight. Julius Randle finished with 14 points and 11 rebounds, and Reggie Bullock added 13 points.
The Knicks and Mavericks traded the lead via extended runs in the second quarter. Burks (eight points) and Obi Toppin (seven points) teamed up for a 15-3 run that gave the Knicks a 44-31 lead.
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The Mavericks were 1-of-6 with four turnovers over a nearly five-minute span before responding with an 18-2 spurt to end the quarter and take a 49-46 halftime lead.
Hardaway scored six points in the run, which ended with Doncic draining the tie-breaking 3-pointer with 13.1 seconds left. New York was 1-of-9 from the field with two turnovers in its final 11 possessions.
There were four lead changes in the third quarter before the Mavericks went ahead for good with a run in which five different players scored. Brunson’s step-back jumper put Dallas up 60-59.
Taj Gibson opened the fourth quarter with a layup to pull the Knicks within one, but the Mavericks maintained a slim lead until Brunson and Doncic scored five points apiece in a 10-0 run that extended Dallas’ lead to 90-75.
New York, which missed 12 straight shots following Gibson’s basket, got no closer than 11 the rest of the way.
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–Field Level Media