Nothing to Love in Philly for Dallas Mavericks in Bad Loss

The Dallas Mavericks traveled to Philadelphia for a matchup with a familiar face in Justin Anderson and the Philadelphia 76ers.

The Dallas Mavericks came into the matchup in Philadelphia with a 29-38 record and just a few games back from the 8th spot out West. In the third game of a four game road trip, the game in Philly was a must win for a playoff pushing Mavs team.

After losing a heart breaker at home to Phoenix and on the road to the Raptors, Dallas rebounded against a very good team in the Wizards on Wednesday.

For the Sixers, they sat at a 24-43 record as one of the worst teams in the league. With Joel Embiid out for the year, they have been riding their ROY candidate in Dario Saric for most of the year.

Philadelphia is coming off a close, two point loss to the Golden State Warriors on Tuesday night.

For the Sixers and Mavericks, it’s the first time meeting since completing one of the bigger trades at the trade deadline. Philadelphia sent Nerlens Noel to Dallas for Justin Anderson, Andrew Bogut, and basically two second rounders.

It was an emotional return for Nerlens Noel back to Philly as he spent Thursday handing out free cheesesteaks to fans in the Philly area.

The Game

The first quarter started off with the Sixers getting out and running with their athleticism. Both Justin Anderson and Nerlens Noel made the appearances against their old teams off the bench as both players wanted to prove their worth. Dallas finished the quarter on a 14-0 run that gave them the lead going into the second.

In the second, Dallas continued their run as they took it up to a 16-0 run from the first quarter. After being down by six in the second quarter, Philly stormed ahead to take the lead. Dallas could never find a groove on the offensive side of the ball. Behind 15 points and five rebounds from Richaun Holmes, the Sixers took an 11 point lead into the second half.

The third quarter was an ugly one for the Mavs as the Sixers went up by 30 points at one point. From Covington hitting threes to Holmes in the middle, Philly had it going on all cylinders. Justin Anderson had a highlight play as he caught the ball off the rim for a huge dunk as he celebrated by flexing afterwards.

Philadelphia took a 31 point lead into the fourth quarter as both tams played there subs for the majority of the fourth.

Philadelphia won the game 116-74.

Deciding Statistic

Philly had the advantage in literally every main statistic of the game over Dallas. From team assists to total rebounds, Philly outplayed the Mavericks in every area.

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The statistic that stuck out the most was fast break points. Philly finished with 29, compared to Dallas’ five.

Player of the Game

The player of the game could really go to two players for the Sixers. Richaun Holmes is deserving of the award, but I’m giving it to Robert Covington.

The forward for Philadelphia put in 18 points on 3-6 shooting from behind the arc. He also finished with nine rebounds and three assists.

Justin Anderson finished with 19 points while Holmes finished with 17.

For the Mavs, Nowitzki was the only starter in double digits with 10 points.

Next: Mavs Tourney Watch: De'Aaron Fox

Dallas completes their four game road trip on Sunday in Brooklyn.