It was an interesting Monday night in the NBA with a number of teams playing their preseason games. The start of the 2017-2018 season is one week away, and teams want to make sure they are ready for another grueling campaign in the NBA. The Dallas Mavericks also played their preseason matchup on Monday night as they hosted the Orlando Magic. It was a semi-sellout crowd at the American Airlines Center as the Mavs were looking to win their third straight preseason home game year.
Dallas comes out on top in a close game
The home team started off the game better, scoring 30 points in the first quarter.
They outscored the magic 30-26 in the first 12 minutes of the game and led 55-48 at halftime. Their biggest lead of the first half was 10 points (50-40). It was a close game in the third quarter, with Dallas leading 76-72 after three periods of playing time. Teams went back and forth in the fourth quarter, but the Mavericks managed to come out on top and win this one 99-96. It was their third straight home victory as they held Orlando to 41.4 percent shooting from the field. The Mavericks outrebounded the Magic 48-44.
Dennis Smith Jr. led the way for Dallas on Monday night, as he finished the game with 16 points, seven assists and six rebounds. Harrison Barnes contributed with 14 points and four rebounds, while Dirk Nowitzki added 10 points and six rebounds for the Mavericks.
D.J. Augustin was the leading scorer for Orlando in this one. Augustin scored 24 points and dished out five assists on the night, while Jonathon Simmons finished the game with 19 points and four rebounds. Marreese Speights added 15 points off the bench for the Magic.
Trail Blazers with their third straight win
The Sacramento Kings hosted the Portland Trail Blazers on Monday night for their preseason matchup.
The Trail Blazers jumped out to an early lead, as they outscored the Kings 29-24 in the first quarter. They increased their lead in the second quarter and were in front by 11 points at halftime (54-43). Sacramento managed to cut that lead down to six points after three quarters of playing time, as Portland led 71-65 heading into the fourth quarter.
Portland held the Kings to just 18 points in the fourth quarter and ended up winning the game comfortably 97-83.
Jusuf Nurkic was the leading scorer for Portland on Monday night. Nurkic finished the game with 16 points and seven rebounds, while his teammate Damian Lillard added 14 points. Evan Turner added 10 points and five rebounds for the Blazers off the bench.
For the Kings, Justin Jackson led the way with 16 points in 27 minutes of action. Skal Labissiere contributed with 13 points and seven rebounds for Sacramento.
