Mavericks Shine In Blowout Win Over Timberwolves

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The Dallas Mavericks survived the absence of Dirk Nowitzki in much of the second half en route to a blowout win over the Minnesota Timberwolves.

If you were told that Dallas Mavericks power forward Dirk Nowitzki would miss most of the second half of Sunday night’s game against the Minnesota Timberwolves, what would you have suspected the outcome to have been?

Now factor in the reality that the Mavericks scored 39 points in the first quarter, a mark only reached one other time this season and that having happened back on December 12th against the Washington Wizards. It was the only time this season that Dallas scored so many points in the first period, which probably comes as no surprise.

Yes, Nowitzki’s slight contribution in the second half was overlooked, in larger part, by an outstanding performance by the entire team against a Timberwolves squad led by future stars like Andrew Wiggins and Karl-Anthony Towns.

A hot topic as of late has been how head coach Rick Carlisle keeps the Mavericks’ offense going when Nowitzki isn’t on the floor. Clear is the fact that Dallas is a much more effective offense with their seven-foot tall German than without.

Well, when small forward Chandler Parsons is playing the way he has been for most this calendar year, it’s much easier to sleep well when Nowitzki has to either rest, or he gets into rare foul trouble, as he did Sunday night at American Airlines Center.

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Parsons helped the Mavericks off to the fastest start they’ve had in awhile en route to a 128-101 win. He looked every bit like the budding star that owner Mark Cuban pried away from the Houston Rockets a couple of years ago in shooting 10-of-15 from the floor and 4-of-7 from beyond the arc. His 29 points led all scorers and his six rebounds were an added benefit, as well.

Seven Mavericks reached double-digits in the offensive onslaught that caught the young Timberwolves by surprise.

While starter Wesley Matthews and Deron Williams combined for 25 points, the Dallas bench also got into the act late after a 31-point lead had been established in the fourth quarter.

Rookie Justin Anderson scored 10 points while hitting on a couple of three-point shots to help keep any designs of a comeback completely unrealistic for Minnesota. Recently acquired David Lee was active in just missing a double-double – Lee scored 13 points and added nine rebounds in perhaps his strongest overall effort while with the Mavs.

Dwight Powell added a huge tomahawk-slam dunk in the closing minutes, and reserve center Salah Mejri added what could have been three blocked shots – one was poorly called goal-tending – before closing Mavericks scoring with an interesting play. The 7’2” Tunisian took a rebound and then took the ball down court himself before spinning away from a defender near baseline and laying up the final bucket of the game. It was a surprising burst of athleticism that got a well-satisfied home crowd on its feet as the final seconds ticked away.

This win marked the fourth time this season that the Mavericks have won a game in which they never trailed. Dallas took road games against the Los Angeles Lakers and Houston Rockets back in November and also handled the Milwaukee Bucks at AAC a few days after Christmas.

Yes, these victories are coming against bad teams, for sure.

What the Mavericks have to do is hope that last week’s better play translates into some closer wins, as opposed to some of the narrow defeats they’ve suffered, especially following the turn of the calendar in January.

Speaking of close losses, the Mavericks have the chance to avenge an overtime loss to Orlando 11 days ago when the Magic head to AAC on Tuesday night. On Thursday night the Mavericks finish up a six-game homestand with a matchup against the Sacramento Kings. Tip off for the next two at AAC is at 7:30pm CST.

Next: Dallas Stars Not Shining So Bright In 2016

Did You Know?

The Mavericks now have five first round picks from the 2005 NBA Draft on the roster. They include third-overall selection Deron Williams, fifth-overall pick Raymond Felton, seventh selection Charlie Villanueva and David Lee, the final choice in the first round.

Published on 02/29/2016 at 19:01 PM
Last updated at 03/01/2016 at 20:30 PM

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