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In a close game between two Western Conference rivals, the Dallas Mavericks snatched a victory from the hands of Oklahoma City with a final scoreline of 105-103.
The game was a thriller as Paul George and Co. looked poised to keep their winning streak going, while Luka Doncic was not going to give in so quickly. Eventually, thanks to some offensive mistakes from Westbrook and some final minute errors from others in the Thunders lineup, the Dallas Mavericks came out on top.
After this match, the Oklahoma City Thunders currently sit 3rd in the Western Conference with a record of 22-13, while the Dallas Mavericks are at 12th with a record of 17-18.
Paul George made sure that he gave his best and his team wins this game, but that wasn't the case.
With all that in mind, here are the top 3 takeaways:
#3 Paul George vs Luka Doncic
This was an amazing battle between two of the most inform players in the league Paul George and the rookie wonder Luka Doncic. They both went back and forth and had a couple of amazing moments in the game.
One of the moments came when Luka Doncic when he broke Paul George's ankle with his amazing dribbles and went for an easy layup for 2 points.
Paul George didn't shut down, he got up and made the Mavericks pay big time by coming up with 36 points and almost got the victory as well. He was phenomenal in the other games and it was another great performance from him.
Throughout the season George has been averaging 26.6points, 8.3 rebounds and 2.2 steals. On the other hand, Luka Doncic has been averaging some of the best rookie numbers ever with averages of 19.6pts, 6.5 rebs and 5.1 assists.
#2 The parity in the 3-point shot of both the teams
Oklahoma City Thunders are the worst 3-point shooting team in the league. They're ranked 30th and shoot at an efficiency of just 30%. This is one of the biggest reasons they have lost some of their easy matches, which they should have been able to win.
In this game as well, the Thunder shot only 23% from the 3-point line, which is again mediocre numbers for a team like the Thunder who have championship aspirations.
On the other hand, the Dallas Mavericks shoot at an effective 35% from the arc and are ranked at 15th throughout the league.
They maintained their numbers in this game as well and shot their normal numbers of 36%. Their reliable 3-point shot has been a big reason for them doing well this season. They're doing more than what was expected of them.
#1 Dallas dominates the boards
The Oklahoma City Thunders are the 2nd best rebounding team in the league. Their giant center Steven Adams is one of the most voracious rebounders of the ball. Yet, in this game, the Thunders were not as effective on boards as they had hoped to be. They grabbed only 39 rebounds, which is 10 less than that of the Mavericks.
For the Mavericks, DeAndre Jordan completely dominated the boards and came up with 17 huge rebounds which certainly played a very crucial part in helping the Mavericks win this game. Even Dallas are a very average rebounding team as they're ranked at 15th league wise.
But, if we just look at as an individual player, then DeAndre Jordan is the 2nd best rebounder in the league and he is averaging 14.3 rebs per game.
In their next match, the Mavericks will face the Thunder again but this time in an away game.
Guess the Lakers players!
