The Dallas Mavericks aim to rebound from their worst loss of the season when they visit the Washington Wizards on Wednesday.
The Mavericks posted their eighth win in 10 outings with a 136-124 victory over New Orleans on Sunday before the Pelicans returned the favor two nights later with a 131-110 decision.
Kyrie Irving, who scored 35 points Sunday, and Tim Hardaway Jr. led the Mavericks with 17 points in the rematch. Luka Doncic made just 5 of 16 shots from the floor and finished with 16 points on Tuesday.
Turnovers ultimately doomed Dallas, which committed 20 on Tuesday. The Pelicans sported a 46-12 advantage in fastbreak points and 60-40 edge in points in the paint in their win.
“It was a bad night all the way around. Our defense, our energy,” Mavericks coach Jason Kidd said. “The turnovers hurt us. It’s hard when you turn it over in transition and you give up that many fastbreak points. It’s hard to guard.”
Though the Mavericks admittedly weren’t too thrilled with competing on the “special” designed courts for the NBA in-season tournament, they said they weren’t offering that as an excuse.
“It doesn’t matter what I say. They’re going to do whatever they want at the end of the day,” Hardaway said, per the Dallas Morning News. “Court. Outdoor court. Windy conditions. Doesn’t matter. Basketball is basketball. They just kicked our (expletive).”
Unfortunately for Washington, it knows all about falling short this season. The Wizards fell for the third time in a row and seventh time in eight games after squandering a 23-point lead and Kyle Kuzma’s season-high, 34-point performance in a 111-107 setback at the Toronto Raptors on Monday.
“We knew that they were going to amp up their pressure a little bit, their level of physicality,” Washington head coach Wes Unseld Jr. said. “It bottled us up a bit. Forced us to extend our catches. We still got a lot of great looks at the rim. … We just couldn’t convert.”
The Wizards missed their last eight shots from the floor.
“We were able to get rim attempts,” Unseld said. “You can’t really buy a better shot than that.”
Kuzma erupted for 36 points in the Wizards’ 113-105 victory over Dallas on Nov. 10, 2022. He churned in 30 more in Washington’s 127-126 win over the Mavericks on Jan. 24.
Daniel Gafford contributed 14 points, nine rebounds and three blocks on Monday and Jordan Poole added 14 points and six assists.
Kuzma (24.1 ppg), Poole (16.2), Deni Avdija (12.5) and Corey Kispert (10.2) are averaging double-digit scoring this season, and rookie Bilal Coulibaly has recorded double-digit totals in three straight games and four of his last five.
“He was really good,” Unseld said of the 19-year-old Coulibaly. “He looks really calm out there, very confident. He’s aggressive. He’s got a pretty good read on when and how. He looks comfortable behind the three-point line, which is I think a bright spot. I just think (he needs to) continue to build.”
–Field Level Media