Houston Rockets, Alperen Sengun Demolish Undermanned Luka-Less Dallas Mavs

Without many important players, including Luka Doncic and Kyrie Irving, the Mavs were dominated by the Rockets to start a back-to-back.

HOUSTON — The Dallas Mavericks (16-12) lost 122-96 to the Houston Rockets (14-12) on Friday without reigning NBA All-Star starters Luka Doncic or Kyrie Irving in the lineup due to injuries. The Mavs played without starting center Dereck Lively II and other rotation players: Dante Exum, Josh Green, and Maxi Kleber. 

"It just puts things in perspective how important Luka is to the team and the things that he creates for everyone," Mavs coach Jason Kidd said. "If he can't go tomorrow [against the Spurs], we have to find a way to make shots."

The Mavs had no answer for Alperen Sengun throughout the game. Often matched against the undersized Grant Williams, Sengun got off to a strong start, recording his first-ever NBA half with at least 20 points and 10 rebounds and tied his best for points in a half.  

“We knew they were missing some players so I started aggressive and finished the game earlier so we could get ready for tomorrow’s game,” Sengun said.

Without a reliable initiator to set the tone for the half-court offense, the Mavs scored only 17 points in the opening period. The team shot 6-24 from the floor and 1-14 from beyond the arc, with three turnovers. The inability to produce offensively continued throughout the remainder of the night. 

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The undersized Mavs lineup that featured several players who have spent some time in Frisco with the Legends — including Olivier-Maxence Prosper, A.J. Lawson, and Greg Brown III — was undersized and struggled to contain Jabari Smith Jr. without fouling. Dallas gave up a 15-2 run in the second quarter without many of the Rockets' starters on the floor.

The Mavs didn't break the 20-point threshold until the 7:26 mark of the second quarter due to Markieff Morris splitting a pair of free throws. With continued struggles to produce much for positive plays offensively, Dallas went on to trail 56-39 at halftime. The team shot 12-52 overall, 3-24 from deep, and 6-9 on free throws through 24 minutes of action. 

After halftime, the Mavs deployed a small ball lineup featuring Jones and Williams handling the frontcourt duties. Houston began lighting up Dallas from beyond the arc With the focus to tighten up on containing Sengun with double teams and early low-man rotations. The inability to get stops only continued. 

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The Rockets pushed their lead to new heights at 71-44 with 7:49 remaining in the third quarter. Later in the period, the Mavs had Dexter Dennis check into the game, giving minutes to each of their low minutes players at one point in the night at that point. The game had well past the point of return. 

“You look at the group at the end, they played hard, played together,” Kidd said. “They did a lot of good things. That’s a positive.”

Dallas ended the night shooting 35-101 overall, 7-40 from deep, and 19-26 on free throws. Prosper finished with a career-high 20 points, adding six rebounds and two assists in 30 minutes of action. Dennis wasn't far behind, contributing 18 points, five rebounds, and four assists. Hardaway and Holmes each added 16 points. 

“Today was a big learning experience for the young guys,” Prosper said. “We were able to get experience. Obviously, we didn’t get the results we wanted at all. But we’re going learn from this and we’re going to move on to the next game.”

Sengun totaled 22 points, 15 rebounds, and three assists despite only playing 25 minutes. Smith added another 21 points and eight rebounds, while Jalen Green contributed 17 points, six rebounds, and four assists on the night. After the game was out of reach, Cam Whitmore put on a show, scoring 14 points with a few emphatic dunks. 

After beginning the season with an 8-2 record through 10 games, the Mavs have gone 8-10 since. As injuries continue to add up, Dallas has quickly fallen in the Western Conference standings, with recent stretches of play emblematic of the post-All-Star-break unraveling that transpired to end last season. 

The Mavs quickly return to action as they face the San Antonio Spurs on Saturday, the second night of a back-to-back at American Airlines.