Toronto Raptors vs Dallas Mavericks Match Player Stats On Dec 26, 2017

The Sports Xchange
Dec 26, 2017

DALLAS -- Behind a clutch performance from J.J. Barea, the Dallas Mavericks finally won one of those games that usually get away from them.

And the victory came against one of the best teams in the Eastern Conference.

Barea scored a team-high 20 points, and the Mavericks went on to defeat the Raptors 98-93 at American Airlines Center on Tuesday night. It was just the third win in the last 11 games for the Mavs (10-25).

The Raptors (23-9) lost for just the second time in their past 14 games.

Barea sealed the game when he drove left and tossed in an underhand shot with 10.2 seconds remaining to push the Dallas lead to 98-93. Prior to that, Raptors forward Serge Ibaka had a pair of chances to make the game tighter.

First, an Ibaka 3-point attempt that would have tied the game rattled in and out before he misfired from short range, a shot that would have cut Toronto's deficit to one.

After those two close encounters by the Raptors, Barea worked the 24-second shot clock, then barreled across the lane and scooped in the shot that snapped Toronto's six-game winning streak.

Dirk Nowitzki (18 points), Harrison Barnes (16 points, 10 rebounds) and Maxi Kleber (15 points) also were the big producers for the Mavs.

Kyle Lowry led the Raptors with 23 points, Jonas Valanciunas finished with 17 points and 11 rebounds, and Ibaka had 11 points and 12 rebounds.

A fastbreak layup by Barea gave the Mavs a seemingly comfortable 94-83 lead with 8:37 remaining in the game. After that, Dallas had to fight off a furious rally by the Raptors, who inched within 96-93 with 1:38 left after a short jumper by Ibaka.

The sterling defense of Wesley Matthews played a large role in the victory. On the same day DeMar DeRozan was named the Eastern Conference Player of the Week, Matthews held the high-scoring Toronto guard to just eight points on 3-of-16 shooting.

As has been the case for most of this season, the Mavs found an early groove and had things going their way pretty quick. Dallas got 11 points from Barnes and eight from Kleber to assume a 31-23 lead after the first quarter.

Part of the reason for the eight-point margin was because Dallas shot 58.3 percent from the field in the first quarter and held the Raptors to 34.8 percent shooting. The Mavs' front line of Nowitzki, Barnes and Kleber were 10 of 13 from the field with 23 first-quarter points.

The Dallas advantage swelled to as high as 45-36 before the Raptors came roaring back and scored the next 10 points to take a 46-45 lead. However, the Mavs regrouped and ended the half in thunderous fashion when Yogi Ferrell fed Kleber for an alley-oop dunk, giving Dallas a 57-53 lead at intermission.

In the second half, where the Mavs have fallen on hard times for most of this season, they finally were able to hang on and win against one of the NBA's elite teams.

NOTES: Before the game, Mavs coach Rick Carlisle talked about the challenges rookie PG Dennis Smith Jr. is enduring while facing some of the league's best playmakers. "I think every starting point guard that he faces is going to be a helluva player," Carlisle said. ... Mavs F Forward Harrison Barnes said he knows he can be a better closer. But coach Rick Carlisle said the Mavs as a whole can help Barnes become a better closer. "It's an ongoing thing. It's not something that you just flip the switch and all of a sudden you're an NBA closer," Carlisle said. ... Raptors G DeMar DeRozan was named the Eastern Conference Player of the Week after averaging 34 points, 4.3 rebounds and 4.0 assists in three games last week. ... The Raptors entered play Tuesday with the best record in the NBA since Nov. 25 at 12-1.