Mavericks pin worst loss ever on Lakers franchise in 122-73 romp

Still disgusted about the previous two games, the Dallas Mavericks took their frustrations out on the Los Angeles Lakers at American Airlines Center.

Fueled by shooting from the 3-point line and sturdy defense, the Mavs obliterated the Lakers, winning 122-73 before a Sunday afternoon sellout crowd of 19,484.

It was the fourth win in the last six games for the Mavs, who boosted their record to 15-29 entering Wednesday’s contest against the floundering New York Knicks.

The 49-point deficit was the worst loss ever for the Lakers (16-32) in their storied history, eclipsing the 123-75 setback to the Utah Jazz on March 18, 2016, and the 142-94 loss to the Los Angeles Clippers on March 6, 2014.

A 44-11 run by the Mavs bridging the late stages of the first quarter and the entire second quarter blew this game wide open. That surge helped the Mavs increase their lead from 23-22 to 67-33 at the half. It was the most points Dallas has scored in any half this season.

The Mavs had won three consecutive games before blowing late leads in losses Thursday to Miami (99-95) and Friday to Utah (112-107 in overtime).

“You’ve got to point to our defense,” said Deron Williams, who contributed 13 points and a game-high eight assists, of Sunday’s win. “In that second quarter I thought we did a great job defensively, setting the tone and setting the tempo.

“It created a lot of offense off the turnovers, and then just getting out and running. They had 11 points in the second quarter, so our defense got us going.”

Overall, the victory was the most points the Mavs scored this season, the fewest they’ve allowed and their third-highest margin of victory in franchise history.

It was also the 13th straight time the Mavs have beaten the Lakers, their longest active winning streak against any team.

“We had a good day and they struggled,” coach Rick Carlisle said. “I think we had something to do with their struggles.

“We did some good things, we rebounded petty well and the ball was going in the basket. On days like today it looks easy, but it’s not.”

It sure looked easy as the Mavs converted 17 of 39 shots from 3-point range and never let up.

The Mavs were so dominant that they built their lead to as high as 53 points — 122-69 after a layup from Pierre Jackson with 2:49 left in the game.

The only blemish for the Mavs came with 1:16 remaining in the first half when guard Wesley Matthews hobbled off the court and into the locker room with a strained right hip. Matthews, who scored 13 points in 14 minutes, said he plans to play against the Knicks.

“It’s not considered serious,” Carlisle said of Matthews’ injury. “I don’t expect him to miss Wednesday.

“He said he’s OK — just a little bit tight.”

In all, the Mavs had seven players score 10 or more points. Justin Anderson came off the bench to score a career-high-tying 19 points, Seth Curry scored nine of his 14 points in the first quarter, Dirk Nowitzki tossed in 13 points, and Pierre Jackson and Devin Harris added 10 points apiece.

This story was originally published January 22, 2017 at 7:41 PM with the headline "Mavericks pin worst loss ever on Lakers franchise in 122-73 romp."