The Dallas Mavericks played their second game in a row in San Antonio against the Spurs on Wednesday night, looking to complete the season sweep. They beat the Spurs 133-129 on Monday behind big performances from Spencer Dinwiddie, Kessler Edwards, and Klay Thompson, but they were still missing as many as four usual starters for this game, including Kyrie Irving, P.J. Washington, and Anthony Davis.
With those players out, Dallas started Dante Exum, Max Christie, Klay Thompson, Naji Marshall, and Kessler Edwards, while San Antonio started Chris Pauk, De'Aaron Fox, Devin Vassell, Harrison Barnes, and Bismack Biyombo.
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After trading points to start the game, the Spurs got out to a seven-point lead to force a timeout from Jason Kidd. Harrison Barnes had six of the Spurs' first 10 points after scoring 29 points against Dallas on Monday.
But over the next six minutes for the remainder of the quarter, the Mavs went on a 19-4 run as San Antonio turned it over five times and shot 1/8 from the floor, and the Mavs took a 28-20 lead into the second. Naji Marshall had a strong opening frame with nine points and two steals. Brandon Williams also returned to the lineup after missing the last game with hamstring tightness to provide some nice plays at the end of the quarter.
The Mavericks initially continued their run with a three from Kessler Edwards before De'Aaron Fox finally brought it to an end with a midrange jumper. The two teams then traded baskets for the next few minutes as the teams combined to make 13 straight shots.
San Antonio kept the offense flowing in the second quarter, erasing that lead by the Mavs to take the lead on a stepback three by Stephon Castle in the final minutes. Chris Paul then hit his second three of the quarter to extend the lead, and Brandon Williams would cut the lead in half with free throws as the Spurs took a 64-62 lead into the break. Both teams shot well in the quarter, with Dallas going 13/19 and the Spurs going 16/27. It helped that the Spurs grabbed eight offensive rebounds.
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The Spurs carried their strong close to the second quarter with an even better start to the third, outscoring the Mavs 8-2 in the opening minutes to go up by eight. But Dante Exum was there to save the day for the Mavs, scoring 11 straight points to get them back in the game. But after getting the lead down to one, the Spurs responded with an 8-0 run.
De'Aaron Fox had it going in the quarter for the Spurs, but Spencer Dinwiddie hit consecutive buckets to keep Dallas within two possessions. But the Spurs kept the offense going while the Mavs dried up, taking a 97-87 lead into the fourth.
The Spurs kept it going from there, going up by 14 in the first few minutes of the fourth, their largest lead of the game. Back-to-back threes got the Mavs back within eight, but that single-digit deficit didn't last long.
San Antonio would be able to keep a double-digit lead for the remainder of the game as De'Aaron Fox set his Spurs career-high, including a banked-in three (later called a two) from the top of the key. The Spurs would go on to win 126-116.
Dallas' biggest issue was they couldn't rebound, getting dominated on the glass 52-34. Combined with San Antonio's 53/94 shooting, it's easy to see why the Mavs lost.
The Mavericks had seven players in double-figures, led by Brandon Williams off the bench with 19 points, followed by Dante Exum (17 points), Naji Marshall (15 points), Kessler Edwards (15 points), Spencer Dinwiddie (14 points), Klay Thompson (12 points), and Dwight Powell (11 points).
San Antonio was led by De'Aaron Fox with 32 points and 11 assists, followed by Keldon Johnson (18 points), Jeremy Sochan (18 points), Devin Vassell (16 points, 10 rebounds, 6 assists), and Harrison Barnes (14 points).
Dallas will travel to Houston to take on the Rockets on Friday.
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