Luka Doncic had 37 points, 11 rebounds and nine assists as the Dallas Mavericks cruised to a 104-91 win over the visiting Memphis Grizzlies on Sunday.
Kristaps Porzingis had 15 points, eight rebounds and a season-high six blocks for Dallas, which led wire-to-wire and won for the 11th time in its last 13 games.
Ja Morant paced Memphis with 35 points, 13 rebounds and six assists. De’Anthony Melton scored 12 points and Jaren Jackson Jr. added 10.
The short-handed Grizzlies played without Dillon Brooks (left ankle sprain) and Brandon Clarke (back soreness) as well as Kyle Anderson, Tyus Jones and Desmond Bane, who are all in the league’s health and safety protocols.
Memphis trailed 48-34 at the half after shooting 28 percent from the field and 2-of-14 (14.3 percent) from 3-point range.
The 34 points marked the fewest points allowed by the Mavericks in the first half this season.
Doncic had 14 points, seven rebounds and five assists in the opening half for Dallas, which won its third straight against Memphis and claimed a 3-1 victory in the season series.
Dallas extended its lead to 68-46 on Dwight Powell’s dunk with 5:33 left in the third quarter and held a 77-61 advantage at the end of the period.
The Grizzlies fell to 1-2 on their four-game road trip and struggled to find any scoring threats outside of Morant.
Jackson Jr. was 4-of-17 shooting after averaging 24.5 points in his last two games, while Melton was 5-of-16 from the field.
Jalen Brunson scored 13 points for Dallas while Dorian Finney-Smith and Tim Hardaway Jr. had nine points apiece.
Memphis, which entered the game ranked fourth in the NBA in scoring at 112.1 points per game, shot 37.4 percent from the field and 4-of-24 (16.7 percent) from 3-point range.
Doncic recorded his sixth game of the season with 30-plus points for Dallas, which maintained a double-digit lead throughout the second half and posted its third wire-to-wire victory in its last five games.
-Field Level Media