Dallas Mavericks won their first playoff series in a long time to surpass the Utah Jazz with a well-timed performance in Game 6. During the closing game, the Mavs used a three-guard lineup of Luka Doncic, Jalen Brunson and Spencer Dinwiddie.
Those three were accounted for 67 of Dallas 98 points in Game 6 98-96 victory to lift the Mavs past Utah Thursday night. Brunson and Doncic combined for 24 points each, while Dinwiddie added 19 coming off the bench.
It had been 11 years to the day, April 28, 2011, since the Mavericks last won a playoff series. The team that had the current Mavs’ head coach as its starting point guard beat Portland to advance to the next round.
The Mavericks ended up winning the NBA title that season in a great playoff run headlined by Dallas’ legend Dirk Nowitzki. Head coach Jason Kidd had to face adversity at the start of the series as the Mavs’ played without Doncic for the first three games.
Jalen Brunson stepped his game up to lead Dallas in the offensive end including a career-high 41-point game in Game 2 of the series. The Mavericks’ coaching was also expecting Spencer Dinwiddie to offer a great game in the series.
The veteran guard, who joined the team last February in a trade that involved sending Kristaps Porzingis to Washington, was not at his usual standards in the first five games of the series vs the Jazz.
Entering Game 6, Dinwiddie averaged 14.6 points on 32.4 percent shooting from the field and 22.2 percent from 3-point distance. However, he was excellent for Dallas in Game 6 as he put up 19 points on 4-of-7 shots from deep.
The Mavericks outscored Utah 36-19 in the crucial third quarter to take a 77-72 lead entering the fourth. Dinwiddie and Doncic scored eight points apiece and Brunson put up seven during that stint.
The Mavericks had a net rating of plus-73.9 per 100 possessions in the third quarter to take the upper hand and eventually win the series. Now, the Texas franchise is turning its attention to the next round, where they’ll set to face the top-seeded Phoenix Suns.
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