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DALLAS. — Coach Jason Kidd had a simple explanation for why his Dallas Mavericks players brought their “A” game on Saturday.
“It was this or we go on vacation,” Kidd said.
Vacation plans have been put on hold as the Mavericks responded in impressive fashion in a win-or-go-home situation, routing the Boston Celtics 122-84 in Game 4 of the NBA Finals. Luka Doncic scored 25 of his 29 points in the first half and Kyrie Irving added 21 points while helping the Mavericks avoid a sweep.
The scene shifts back to Boston for Game 5 on Monday as the Celtics will look to close it out at home. However, Dallas showed life on Friday after Boston was the dominant team while winning the first three games of the best-of-seven series.
The script flipped in Game 4. Doncic and the Mavericks got off to a fast start and didn’t look back. Doncic started a 10-0 spurt in the first quarter with a floater and closed it with a driving layup as Dallas took a 25-14 lead with 3:19 left in the period. That early run was a sign of things to come. We were locked in, especially on the defensive end,” Doncic said. “We played with pace. It helped (my teammates). I’m here to help them in every way I can. We just got to play like that.”
Dallas had a 34-21 lead by the end of the first quarter, scoring the final six points on 3-pointers by Irving and P.J. Washington.
The Mavericks kept pouring it on. They doubled up the Celtics 50-25 on a layup by Irving at the 5:16 mark of the second quarter. To close the half, Maxi Kleber drilled a corner 3-pointer off an assist by Doncic. That gave Dallas a 61-35 lead at the break.
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The Mavericks shot 52.3 percent from the field compared to the Celtics’ 29.7 percent in the opening half. Dallas also won the rebounding battle 29-13 over the opening 24 minutes. — Field Level Media.
Bongani Ndlovu
Mathew Masinge