Luka Doncic and Tim Hardaway Jr. combined to score 36 points during a dominant third quarter, lifting the Dallas Mavericks to a 121-100 victory over the host New York Knicks on Saturday afternoon.
The Mavericks outscored the Knicks 41-15 in the third and 69-41 in the second half.
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Doncic, who entered Saturday leading the NBA in scoring at 33.5 points per game, scored 19 of his 30 points in the third before sitting out the fourth.
Hardaway, who played parts of four seasons with New York, scored 17 of his 28 points in the third before exiting for good in the final minute of the quarter.
Spencer Dinwiddle (17 points, nine rebounds, nine assists) flirted with a triple-double for the Mavericks, who won for just the second time in seven games. Maxi Kleber (13 points) and Reggie Bullock (10 points) each scored in double figures off the bench.
Julius Randle scored 24 points and Immanuel Quickley added 23 off the bench for the Knicks, who have lost six of their last eight games.
RJ Barrett had 13 points, as did ex-Mavericks guard Jalen Brunson, who signed with New York in July after spending the first four seasons of his career in Dallas.
The Knicks led 32-20 at the end of the first quarter nd opened the lead to 15 points at 38-23 on a layup by Isaiah Hartenstein with 10:13 left in the second.
The Mavericks scored the next 11 points to start a 20-5 run that ended with Hardaway sinking a 3-pointer to tie the score at 43-43 with 3:14 remaining. The teams were knotted once more before Randle ended the half on a 7-2 run to give the Knicks a 59-52 lead.
Hardaway and Doncic began the game-turning surge by combining for four 3-pointers in a 12-3 run that gave the Mavericks a 68-65 lead – their first lead since 3-2.
Barrett responded with a 3-pointer for the Knicks before Hardaway connected from beyond the arc to give Dallas the lead for good and start a 17-0 run. During that stretch, New York went 0-for-7 from the field with three turnovers.
–Field Level Media
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