After back-to-back victories, the Golden State Warriors welcomed the Dallas Mavericks to Chase Center on Tuesday night in a contest with serious postseason implications.
With Golden State in the position for a play-in playoff game at the No. 9 seed in the Western Conference, a victory over the sixth-seeded Mavericks was crucial for playoff positioning.
Instead, the Warriors fell flat after the Mavericks dropped early haymakers. In the first half, the Warriors endured a scoring drought, registering zero points in a 9-minute, 40-second stretch.
As the Warriors went quiet, Luka Doncic pushed the Mavs to a dominant 62-29 lead before halftime, essentially ending the game shortly after it started. Doncic posted a game-high 39 points on 15-of-23 shooting from the floor with eight assists and six rebounds.
Steph Curry led the Warriors with 27 points on 9-of-18 shooting from the floor with two assists and two steals in 30 minutes. However, it wasn’t close to enough in a 133-103 loss.
The Warriors will need to reset before the team leaves on the final road swing on the season, starting with a tilt against the Minnesota Timberwolves on Thursday evening. The Warriors have 10 games left on the schedule during a pivotal stretch run to the postseason.
First quarter
Golden State’s scoring drought began shortly after the tip, starting in the first quarter. Behind eight points from Curry on 2-of-6 shooting from the floor, the Warriors mustered 12 total points in the first quarter. Mychal Mulder and Andrew Wiggins were the only other members of the Warriors to notch a bucket in the opening quarter.
As a team, the Warriors shot 4-of-21 from the floor in the first quarter. Tim Hardaway Jr. nearly outscored the Warriors’ entire team with 11 points on 3-of-4 shooting from the field in six minutes.
The Warriors’ rough scoring stretch bled deep into the second quarter, resulting in the lowest-scoring half in the Steve Kerr era, 29 points.
Mychal Mulder
Blowout losses
The Warriors are kings of blowout Ls this season. Loss margins after tonight's Dallas bloodbath: 53, 39, 31, 30, 26, 26, 26, 25, 22, 22, 21.
— Anthony Slater (@anthonyVslater) April 28, 2021