Despite Turner’s Big Night, Sixers Fall in Dallas

By Micah Powell, Sixers.com

THE FACT: Monta Ellis poured in 24 points, marking his 11th consecutive game with at least 18 points. No other player has started his career in Dallas with more than two.

THE LEAD: Ellis notched 19 of his 24 points in the second half, and Dirk Nowitzki chipped in 20, to propel Dallas to a 97-94 come-from-behind win over Philadelphia, Monday night at the American Airlines Center.

Philadelphia (5-7) jumped out to an early advantage, leading Dallas (7-4) by as much as 10 points in the second quarter, but Ellis took over after halftime, connecting on 5-of-9 shots from the field and 8-of-9 from the free-throw line to lead the comeback effort.

The Mavericks overcame sloppy play from the outset, as Philadelphia turned 21 Dallas turnovers into 22 points and recorded a 31-16 advantage in fast break points. The 76ers were done in at the line, where they connected on just 12-of-22 shots from the charity stripe, while Dallas hit 20-of-26 attempts.

QUOTABLE I: “My teammates look for me to make plays not only for myself but for others and they put me in a great position, so that’s what I tried to do.”

— Ellis on his fourth-quarter performance.

THE STAT: The Mavericks held on for the win despite being outscored 54-26 in the paint.

TURNING POINT: Shawn Marion threw down a fast break slam to cap off a 10-2 run to give Dallas its first lead of the game, 70-69, late in the third quarter. The dunk noticeably energized the team and the crowd, keying the Mavs to a win.

QUOTABLE II: “They’re really hard to guard and they’re well coached. We missed a lot of free throws and we missed a lot of layups. We didn’t help ourselves, but I was proud of our guys.”
— 76ers coach Brett Brown.

BAD MOVE: Dallas changed up its starting five for the first time this season, inserting Jae Crowder forSamuel Dalembert. The change did not lead to favorable results early, as the Mavericks started 0-of-7 from the field, including 0-of-5 from Crowder, and didn’t score their first points until a Nowitzki jumper ended the drought with seven minutes remaining in the first quarter.

QUOTABLE III: “I didn’t like the matchups to start the game, but we didn’t play well and they played harder than us. … The lineup to start the game didn’t work out, but we just had to keep searching. By the time the game was over, we played 11 guys. Everyone that played contributed. This was a survival-type game. We did what we had to do to win.”

— Mavericks coach Rick Carlisle on starting Crowder over Dalembert

FANTASY SPOTLIGHT: Evan Turner flirted with a triple-double, posting a game-high 26 points, nine rebounds and seven assists in the loss. … Nowitzki notched his first double-double since Feb. 24, 2013, adding 10 rebounds to his 20 points.

ROOKIE WATCH: First-round selection in 2013, Shane Larkin (fractured right ankle), made his NBA debut, playing nine minutes and contributing three points, three assists and three steals.

NOTABLE: Nowitzki’s 20 points brings him within 17 points of tying Reggie Miller (25,279) for 15th place on the NBA’s all-time scoring list. With a first-quarter 3-pointer, he also passed Dan Majerle (1,360) for 25th place on the NBA’s all-time 3-point field goals made list. … Ellis added 10 assists to record his first double-double with the Mavs. … The starting lineups did the damage, as the two benches combined for just 30 points. … Dalembert amassed 14 rebounds off the bench, tying a career-high for most boards in a reserve role. … Tony Wroten continued to impress in Michael Carter-Williams‘ absence, posting 19 points and five steals. … Spencer Hawes recorded his seventh double-double with 11 rebounds and 10 points.

UP NEXT: For the Mavericks, Wednesday vs. Rockets, Friday vs. Jazz, Saturday @ Nuggets. For the 76ers, Wednesday vs. Raptors, Friday vs. Bucks, Saturday @ Pacers.