A 0-6 record tells you how six games ended. It offers a lousy read on the next one. Sacramento arrived in Dallas without a win on Monday, led by a point at halftime and left American Airlines Center with a 115-100 victory. For the Mavericks, the trouble was how many players the Kings could use to get that first result.
Dallas did take the lead in the third, and its best interior scorer was a good reason to think the game could stay close. The Mavericks went ahead 65-64 after Daniel Gafford converted a layup and the free throw that followed.
Gafford was the clearest source of stability for the home team: he finished with 20 points on 9-of-10 shooting, two made free throws and seven rebounds.
That lead did not last. Leaky Black put Sacramento back in front with a 3-pointer, then Darius Acuff Jr. added a pull-up jumper and a driving floater. Black later made another 3-pointer, with Acuff again credited with the assist. Sacramento moved from a one-point deficit to a 74-67 advantage before the quarter ended and led 81-74 entering the fourth.
Black’s four threes accounted for all 12 of his points. Acuff had 25 points and six assists. One provided a reliable finish to an outside shot, and the other could help create it. That combination gave Sacramento a way out of a close third quarter before Monk and LaVine supplied a different kind of trouble in the fourth.
The second phase came early in the fourth. Monk made a driving floater, a step-back jumper and a 3-pointer during the period’s opening stretch. LaVine also made a 3-pointer, and Monk’s later 3-pointer moved Sacramento’s lead to 94-79.
Monk finished with 24 points, seven assists and five made 3-pointers; LaVine had 23 points and five made 3-pointers. Their production gave the Kings another pair of reliable scoring options after Acuff and Black had separated the teams in the third.
Dallas made that lead uncomfortable in the fourth. Walter Clayton Jr. made two 3-pointers, and Morez Johnson Jr. added a dunk as the Mavericks cut the deficit from 94-79 to 94-87. Clayton finished with 20 points on 6-of-9 shooting, including four made 3-pointers, while Johnson scored 13 on 5-of-5 shooting. That response made the finish competitive again.
The Kings got the next seven points after the lead fell to seven. Acuff made two at the line, Monk made a three and Acuff scored on a floater. Dallas scored again before the game was finished, but there was less room for a mistake once LaVine hit his two late threes. The second one made it 112-93.
