NBA 2018-19: Key takeaways from the Dallas Mavericks' blowout win at the Houston Rockets

The Dallas Mavericks ran away with a 128-108 victory over the Houston Rockets in a match that they thoroughly dominated from start to finish.

After the match, Dallas Mavericks go above .500 and are currently sitting at 8th position in the Western Conference with a 10-9 record. The Houston Rockets have now dropped to the 14th position with a 9-11 record and need to step it up really quick if they want to mount any challenge in the West.

The Mavericks took an 18 point lead into the half courtesy of a half-court buzzer beater from their rookie sensation Luka Doncic. The Mavericks have looked really good in recent matches and are vying for a playoff spot. They started off the season in a torrid fashion but it seems that they have found the team chemistry. They even won a recent encounter against the defending champions, the Golden State Warriors.

Here are the top takeaways from the game.

#3 Lights out shooting from the Dallas Mavericks:

Dallas Mavericks were red hotfrom the field — Dallas Mavericks were red

The Dallas Mavericks shot 54% from the field for the match and were hot throughout the match. All their starters reached the double figures and they all were consistent from the field.

They also shot excellently from the 3PT line. For the match, they shot 17-34 from beyond the arc. They were simply no match for the Houston Rockets team that are desperately missing their playmaker, Chris Paul at the moment.

Harris came off the bench and contributed 20 points on 6-8 shooting from the field. He shot 5-6 from the deep and led the bench unit. JJ Barea finished with the team high in assists. He dished out 12 assists for the match and has been consistently providing good bench play for the Mavericks.

#2 Shooting struggles for the Rockets

The Houston Rockets are a high volume 3PT shooting team. But they were very off on their outside shots in this match which cost them very dearly.

The Rockets were poor on defense in this match with the Mavericks scoring on them anytime they wanted. The Rockets really needed to shoot nicely in this game if they wanted to have any chance of winning. But they really struggled shooting from the 3PT line. The Rockets finished the match shooting 29% from beyond the arc, compared to 50% shooting by the Dallas Mavericks.

James Harden recorded a triple-double in the match after his 54 point performance against the Wizards which also resulted in a defeat. The reigning MVP recorded 25 points, 11 rebounds and 17 assists in the match but also finished with 8 turnovers.

It is quite evident that the Rockets need Paul back really soon to reduce the burden on Harden.

#1 Consistent performance from Luka Doncic

Dallas Mavericks got their franchise cornerstone in Luka Doncic

The Dallas Mavericks really struck gold in the lottery getting Luka Doncic with the #3 overall pick in the draft. Doncic has been consistently performing great for them ever since the first game.

Luka Doncic finished with a team-high 20 points on 6-11 shooting from the field, 3-7 shooting from the 3PT line and 5-5 from the free throw line. Doncic has been averaging 19.1 PPG, 6.6 rebounds and 4.3 assists per game over the course of the season and has been the best player for the Dallas Mavericks.

Doncic has shown maturity well beyond his years. He has been consistent in almost all the games and has been really patient and composed during shot making. The Dallas Mavericks will be hugely reliant on the displays of this rookie sensation if they are to challenge for a playoff spot in the Western Conference.

Edited by Abhinav Munshi