Mavs maintain mastery of Lakers
LOS ANGELES -- Wesley Matthews scored 20 points and Harrison Barnes added 17, and the Dallas Mavericks extended their dominance of the Los Angeles Lakers with a 101-89 victory Thursday night at Staples Center.
Dwight Powell came off the bench to contribute 14 points and six rebounds for the Mavericks (10-23), who beat the Lakers for the 12th consecutive time, seven of those occurring at Staples. Devin Harris also scored 14 points, while Dorian Finney-Smith had 12 points.
Dallas is 4-14 on the road, but three of those victories were registered in Los Angeles. The Mavericks are 2-0 against the Lakers this season and also recorded a win over the Clippers this month.
Julius Randle led the Lakers (12-24) with 18 points and Nick Young scored 17. D'Angelo Russell chipped in 15 points and six assists for the Lakers, who fell for the sixth time in seven game and the 14th time in 16.
Dallas played without forward Dirk Nowitzki, who was sidelined due to an illness.
The Mavericks wiped out a seven-point halftime deficit, grabbing a double-digit lead in the third quarter. Back-to-back 3-pointers by Matthews and another trey by Seth Curry rallied the Mavericks to a 73-65 lead with 4:03 left in the third quarter.
By the end of the quarter, the Mavericks increased the margin to 81-70. They outscored the Lakers 31-13 in the third.
The Lakers used hot shooting to produce a 57-50 edge at the break. Los Angeles connected on 56.8 percent of its shots compared to 48.8 percent for the Mavericks in the first half. Russell led all scorers with 13 first-half points, nine of those coming in the first quarter.
For the game, the Mavericks shot 49.4 percent to 47.1 percent for the Lakers. Dallas connected on 14 of 31 (45.2 percent) from long distance compared to 7 of 19 (36.8 percent) for Los Angeles.
The Mavericks also outrebounded the Lakers 42-34. They also enjoyed an advantage in second-chance points, 15-2.
NOTES: Dallas made at least 10 3-pointers for the 12th time in the past 15 games, resulting in an uptick in scoring. The Mavericks are averaging 99.6 points during that span compared to 91 points in their initial 18 games of the season. ... Mavericks G J.J. Barea (left leg muscle strain) missed his fourth consecutive contest. Injuries have kept Barea out of 22 games this season. ... Lakers G Lou Williams converted a free throw in a 44th consecutive game, the longest active streak for an NBA reserve. ... The Mavericks visit the Golden State Warriors on Friday. ... The Lakers resume play Sunday at home against the Toronto Raptors.