Stats rundown: 3 numbers from a Mavericks blowout win over the Cavaliers

The Dallas Mavericks easily defeated the Cleveland Cavaliers 110-90 on Friday night. The Mavericks led pretty much the whole way. Luka Doncic passed 5,000 points for his career, and Dallas clinched the Southwest Division for the first time since 2010. All in all, it was a great night for the Mavericks.

Doncic led the Mavericks in scoring, putting up 24 points. Dallas also got a strong performance from Tim Hardaway Jr., who scored 20. Collin Sexton led the way for the Cavaliers with 27 points and four assists. Cedi Osman also chipped in 22 and seven assists.

The Cavaliers aren’t a good team, but lately that’s exactly the type of squad the Mavericks have struggled against all year. It was refreshing to see them dominate a club that’s looking forward to the end of the season.

Here are three numbers from the win:

36: The number of wins the Mavericks have when leading by 10+ at any point in the game.

The Mavericks have been up and down all year, but one thing they’ve done is hold big leads. There have been plenty of times when they’ve frustrated fans and come out flat. If they start a game out with energy, though, and dominate early, they rarely lose. They’re 36-2 on the season when they lead by 10+ points at any point in a game.

5: The number of four point plays Tim Hardaway Jr. has completed this season.

Hardaway was fouled on a 3-point attempt midway through the second quarter. He made the shot and the following free throw. It’s becoming a speciality of his. The four-point play was his third of the week. It’s no surprise, because Hardaway excels at hitting tough shots from deep with a defender in his face.

28: The max minutes played by any Mavericks player.

The Mavericks have missed a ton of games due to injury and health and safety protocols. That’d be tough in any year, but this compressed season has been an absolute grind. So it’s nice that Dallas was able to spread the minutes throughout the roster. The rookies and end of bench guys were able to get on the court because the game was out of reach by the fourth quarter. Doncic only played 23 minutes. The Mavericks needed rest, and by blowing out the Cavaliers early they were able to get it.

Here’s the postgame podcast, Mavs Moneyball After Dark. If you can’t see the embed below “More from Mavs Moneyball”, click here. And if you haven’t yet, subscribe by searching “Mavs Moneyball podcast” into your favorite podcast app.