George scores twenty-five points as the Clippers defeat the Mavs.
With Terance Mann contributing 17 points and Paul George contributing 25 points and nine rebounds, the Los Angeles Clippers defeated the Dallas Mavericks 107-88 on Saturday night, their fourth win in five games.
For the Clippers, who didn’t need all four of their stars to shine, Kawhi Leonard finished with eight points after missing his first nine attempts, while James Harden finished with just eight points and seven assists.
Even though Russell Westbrook finished with 14 points, 8 rebounds, and 7 assists, the Clippers easily defeated the typically high-scoring Mavericks because they controlled the most of the game and only George scored regularly.
Harden, who has only attempted two field goals and two 3-pointers, remarked, “That’s the beauty of this team.”
“We have guys that can step up and contribute on any given night, whether it’s with scoring or in other ways.” As a team, victory is the only thing that counts.
That means there will be different approaches and different evenings, whichever that turns out. We simply played pretty excellent four-quarter basketball tonight.
After the Clippers lost to New Orleans at home the previous night, they showed once again how many ways they can win since adding Harden to the team.
Mann stepped up in his starting role with his highest-scoring game of the season, while Norman Powell added 15 points with three 3-pointers.
After playing a season-low 14 minutes against New Orleans, Westbrook also had a strong response.
Westbrook declared, “Definitely a big win for us, especially after last night.” “My job is to make sure we extend or build our lead when I come in, no matter what time I’m on the floor.”
The Mavs, who defeated the Lakers on Wednesday, had the last two days off in Los Angeles. Kyrie Irving scored 26 points and Luka Doncic scored 30 for the Mavs.
For the second straight game, Dallas scored the fewest points of the season and failed to score more than 100 points.
Coach Jason Kidd of Dallas observed, “They were physical from the start, and we didn’t shoot the ball well.”
“On this journey, we didn’t flee like we had discussed. That was actually the first time we received a 3 in transition when we went small.
We’ll examine this again and comprehend the physicality with which the Clippers began the game.
In the first half, Los Angeles led by eighteen points thanks to 15 points from George. When the Clippers appeared to be taking the lead, Doncic’s 17 points in the second quarter kept the game tight.
During a scoreless period spanning over 5 1/2 minutes in the third quarter, Dallas missed 13 consecutive shots, which gave the Clippers a 24-point lead.
Before making his first nine attempts at a baseline jumper late in the third quarter, Leonard was unsuccessful. He shot 2 for 12 in the end, missing all five of his 3-pointers.
After participating in just 161 of the Clippers’ 308 regular-season games during his first four years in Los Angeles due to injury and rest, Leonard hasn’t missed a game yet this season.
While Leonard may have missed one of these back-to-back games in past seasons, Clippers coach Tyronn Lue rejected the idea that Leonard could find it difficult to adjust to the grind of the NBA.
Lue declared, “I have no concerns.” “Medical staff will also inform us if he needs time off. Right now, he feels well.
Ivica Zubac led the Clippers with 11 points and 14 rebounds in the low post, while Mavs big Dereck Lively missed the game due to a bruised lower back sustained in a fall against the Lakers.
Doncic grimaced as he returned to defense in the first minute of the game, seemingly hurting his hand, but he continued to play. When it came to 3-pointers, he was 1 for 8.
