3 observations from Warriors’ comeback victory over Mavericks in Game 2

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The Golden State Warriors (1-0) hosted the Dallas Mavericks (0-1) in Game 2 of the Western Conference finals. Golden State aimed to maintain homecourt advantage and take a 2-0 lead. Dallas intended to tie the series at a game apiece and steal homecourt advantage. The Warriors overcame a 19-point first-half deficit in a 126-117 victory to take a 2-0 lead in the series.

Stephen Curry led the Warriors with 32 points on 21 shots, and added 8 rebounds and 5 assists. Jordan Poole was a distant 2nd, leading Golden State’s bench with 23 points on 10 shots and 7 free throw attempts.

Luka Doncic led the Mavericks with 42 points on 23 field goal attempts and 15 free throw attempts. He also contributed 8 dimes and 5 boards.

Here are 3 observations from Game 2.

Ntilikina: 4 minutes, minus-10

The Mavericks came out cooking, taking up a 16-point grip in the first quarter. But as we’ve seen time and time again, a double-digit lead — even one pushing 20 points — is nothing to sweat for Golden State.

The Mavericks even did the Warriors a favor, bringing in Frank Ntilikina the first quarter. Golden State zoned up with Ntilikina on the court, daring him to zero in on open corner threes. The bet paid off, as Dallas’ offense came to a screeching halt with him on the court.

The Mavericks were up 16. The Warriors went on a 13-0 run to get themselves right back in the affair. Jason Kidd’s decision to play the former Knick ultimately back-fired, as Dallas was outscored by 10 points in the 4 minutes Ntilikina was on the court.

 

Dallas goes to target practice

Even in the thrill of victory, the Warriors didn’t make this game easy for themselves at all. Dallas led by as many as 19 points in the first half largely because of blistering three-point shooting.

The Mavericks knocked down 15 threes in the first half, most of which spoke volumes to the putrid defensive display from the Warriors. All half long, Golden State was late to close-outs and messy in rotations, failing to apply pressure in a timely fashion and bother Dallas’ shooters. Even when they made it to the vicinity of the Maverick shooter in time, the Warriors lacked discipline. They jumped at shot fakes, leveraging the airborne Warrior to make space by way of side-steps. The communication on pick-and-rolls was terrible, allowing the Mavericks to screen, pop, and open up for threes out of the ball screen.

Even when Golden State went to a zone, the Mavericks got into their offense early and walked into threes above the break while the Warriors fumbled around the floor half asleep. The likes of Jalen Brunson and Reggie Bullock were essentially in target practice throughout the first half, and the shot-making kept the Dubs at bay.

Looney's tune

As they always do, though, the Warriors chipped away. A 19-point deficit was slashes to 14 points by halftime. If you know anything about this era of Warriors basketball, a deficit of 20 points is no sweat for that high-powered offense.

A 14-point deficit at halftime? That might as well be a lead. Everyone in the building knew it. The Mavericks were just hoping that Friday night might be different.

No such luck.

It was only 2 of the usual suspects who did damage for Golden State, with Stephen Curry and Jordan Poole combining for 55 points. Dallas otherwise did a decent job of inhibiting the Warriors’ pressure points. But, it was an unlikely hero who put a hurting on the Mavericks.

Kevon Looney snuck around the court, screening and tip-toeing to the rim all night long as Dallas keyed in on the shooters and off-ball support. He scored 21 points on 14 shots, and ripped down 12 rebounds for Golden State.

Just when Dallas thought it contained Golden State’s offense, Looney was there, active on the roll, to demoralize them and slump the shoulders of the Mavericks and their fans as they came to grips with the reality that they blew an opportunity to steal homecourt advantage.

The Warriors (2-0) will look to take a commanding 3-0 lead as they hit the road for Game 3 against the Mavericks in Dallas. Tip-off is scheduled for 9 PM, Eastern time. You can catch the drama on TNT.

This post originally appeared on Warriors Wire! Follow us on Facebook and Twitter

 

Story originally appeared on Warriors Wire