HOUSTON -- The 11 days the Mavericks last faced the Houston Rockets in Toyota Center have featured a whole lot of Luka Doncic scoring … and assisting … and rebounding … and more scoring.
How appropriate Doncic rediscovered that rhythm to buoy their quick return with more of the same upset-saving heroics.
In Dallas’ 111-106 victory Monday night against the Rockets, their 23-year-old superstar tallied 39 points, 12 rebounds and eight assists in 41 minutes, including 29 points in the second half to transform the team’s sluggish, inefficiency start.
The Mavericks have now won seven consecutive games for the first time since Feb. 12 to March 4, 2011, a few months before claiming the franchise’s lone championship.
Though the current streak of victories hasn’t come against competition akin to what the Mavericks might face during what they hope will be another strong playoff run this spring, their consistency in clutch time and Doncic’s NBA-leading production has masked other shortcomings.
Flash back a couple hours earlier, and Doncic didn’t appear likely to be celebrating Spencer Dinwiddie’s key midrange jumper to extend the Mavericks’ lead to 3 points with 10.7 seconds remaining or to be commending Christian Wood for a pair of crucial blocks in the last 3:40.
Less than one minute into the second quarter, Doncic trudged to the Mavericks bench, took his seat at the end and hunched over, left elbow on his knee, hand propping up his chin, expression blank, staring off to the corner of the court.
A look of exasperation and discouragement.
What juxtaposition as the Bally Sports Southwest broadcast captured Doncic’s expression while promoting a graphic about his ascent as the first NBA player to ever record at least 225 points, 50 rebounds and 50 assists over a five-game stretch.
And what a reminder of how the Mavericks’ six-game winning streak entering this game might not have materialized without Doncic’s record-shattering, single-handed, do-it-all dominance against teams at the bottom of the standings.
In the first half Monday, Doncic scored just 10 points and shot 3 of 12 from the field.
Related: The Mavericks trailed the 10-win Rockets, the worst team in the Western Conference, by 11 points (55-44) at halftime.
But come the third quarter, Doncic rediscovered his rhythm, and the Mavericks, in turn, did against another inferior foe, too.
Doncic recorded 19 points, including 9 of 10 free throws, while playing all of the third quarter to help Dallas outscored Houston 39-32 in the period. In he stayed for the fourth quarter -- the fifth time in this winning streak he’s played at least all but a few seconds of the full second half -- and the roll continued.
In his final game against his pre-trade Rockets squad this season, Christian Wood added 21 points, seven rebounds and four assists while shooting 8 of 14 from the floor. Tim Hardaway Jr. -- who appeared to shake off a twisted ankle late in the third quarter -- also scored 21 points, including five 3-pointers.
During this seven-game winning streak, Dallas has faced five teams currently out of the Western Conferecne’s playoff or play-in standings: the eleventh-place Minnesota Timberwolves, 13th-place Los Angeles Lakers, 14th-place San Antonio Spurs and last-place Rockets.
Their other victim, the New York Knicks, currently occupy a play-in spot in the East.
Still, five of the seven games entered clutch time -- what the NBA defines as games within five points in the last five minutes -- and in all three of Doncic’s masterpieces of 50 points or more, the Mavericks needed him to either hit a heroic dagger shot in the final minutes or execute near-perfect intentionally missed free throws to escape with victory.
To continue the streak this week will take more Doncic marvels -- and likely bigger contributions from his supporting cast.
After their first two-day rest since early December, the Mavericks will face the Eastern Conference-leading Boston Celtics on Thursday and New Orleans Pelicans -- currently third in the West, on Saturday.
