June 14 (UPI) — In Game 4 of the NBA Finals on Friday, the Dallas Mavericks defense proved to be a lethal threat to the Boston Celtics, displaying their teeth and ferociously guarding their basket to prevent losing the series.
All-NBA guard Luka Doncic responded, “I think our energy was way higher,” on the ABC broadcast when questioned about the Mavericks’ defensive performance in the 122-84 thumping of Dallas.
“Everybody was locked in on the defensive end and we played with higher pace.”
Doncic led the contest with 29 points scored. The third-largest winning margin in NBA Finals history was achieved by the Mavericks, who won by 38 points. The Mavericks outshot the Celtics 50.5% to 36.3%, and they had a lead of up to 48 points.
Coach Jason Kidd of the Mavericks told reporters, “We had to play our A game.” “It was either that or we take a vacation. The team did an excellent job, in my opinion, of letting the game flow and not pushing.”
The best-of-seven game series’ fifth game will take place in Boston on Monday.
With Doncic scoring 13 points in the first 12 minutes, the Mavericks led 34–21 going into the second quarter, shooting almost 60% from the field. In the first period, the Mavericks scored 22 points in the paint after going on a 10-0 run to gain the upper hand.
In the second quarter, the Celtics were still frustrated by the physical defense. Dallas outscored the Celtics 27–14 in the quarter after jumping out to a 16–4 lead. They went into halftime up 61-35.
With 35 points at the half, the Celtics had never trailed in either the regular season or the postseason.
Doncic scored 25 points in the first half, breaking through the Celtics defense repeatedly and handing out assists to teammates when he wasn’t hitting the rim himself. In the opening 24 minutes, the Celtics only made 5 of their 19 3-point tries.
Tim Hardaway Jr., who came off the bench to score 15 points in the third quarter, made five 3-pointers to help the Mavericks defeat the Celtics 31-25. They had a 92–60 lead going into fouth.
The Mavericks defeated the Celtics 30–24 in the last 12 minutes after resting their starters in the fourth quarter. They outscored the Celtics 26 to their final 60 points in the paint. Additionally, the Mavericks had a 54-40 advantage in points off the bench.
Kyrie Irving, a player from Dallas, scored 21 points. Dereck Lively II grabbed 12 rebounds in addition to scoring 11 points.
Following their combined 61 points in Game 3, Celtics forwards Jayson Tatum and Jaylen Brown produced 15 and 10 points in Game 4, respectively. Together, they succeeded on 7 out of 22 (31%) of their shot attempts.
Monday in Boston at 8:30 p.m. EDT, the Celtics (3-1) will play Game 5 against the Mavericks (1-3). If needed, Game 6 will take place in Dallas on Thursday. Boston will host Game 7 on June 23.
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