All continuous recording ends. That's why they're not just stripes, they're stripes. as is.
The Dallas Mavericks (38-29) had their streak abruptly ended at two on Thursday against the Oklahoma City Thunder (46-20) at Paycom Center. It was Daniel Gafford's 33rd consecutive field goal streak and, more importantly, the team's four-game streak. Streak — lost 126-119.
But just as Dallas couldn't get rid of the pesky Stephen Curry-less Warriors the night before, the Thunder couldn't get rid of this pesky Luka Doncic-less version of the Mavericks. Doncic injured his hamstring in the fourth quarter of the game against Golden State and missed the second night of the back-to-back against Oklahoma City.
Kyrie Irving quickly stepped up in Doncic's absence and kept the Mavs within screaming distance of the Thunder, who are tied for first place in the Western Conference standings, all night long. Irving led all scorers in the loss with 36 points on 12-of-18 shooting, 12 assists and two steals. Tim Hardaway Jr. may also be turning a corner after a long stretch of uninspiring basketball. Hardaway made 5 of 9 3-point shots, had 23 points and grabbed nine rebounds.
But without the firepower of one of the best players on the planet, the Mavs didn't have enough to defeat the young run-and-gun Thunder. Shai Gilgeous-Alexander led OKC and contributed to the victory with 31 points on 9-of-16 shooting and 9 rebounds. Forward Jaylen Williams added 27 points in the win. Here are three statistics that loomed large regarding the Mavs' recent losses.
32 seconds: How long did Daniel Gafford's field goal streak last?
ah. It was a lot of fun, wasn't it? Daniel Gafford entered Thursday's game with 33 straight field goal attempts over the last five games, but he missed his first attempt on the Mavs' first offensive possession against the Thunder.
Dante Exum fumbled a drive in traffic, and Gafford gobbled up an offensive rebound before taking a tough inside matchup with Chet Holmgren. Holmgren did a good job of thwarting the rising Gafford, and Gafford's attempt to break Wilt Chamberlain's 35-game winning streak, set in February 1967, was visible off the glass and rim. When it ended.
:format(webp):no_upscale()/cdn.vox-cdn.com/uploads/chorus_asset/file/25337302/usa_today_22779209.jpg)
Gafford made four subsequent attempts and finished the night with 19 points and 15 rebounds against the Thunder on 8-of-11 from the field. I have nothing but respect for his efficiency.
Gafford was forced to leave the game briefly in the third quarter after twisting his right ankle while trying to grab a long rebound after missing a 3-point shot by Josh Guidy. He walked through it, got right back into the game, and made another big dunk with 7:45 left in the third to keep the Mavs up 77-70, but it was certainly a scary moment.
12 of 29: Dallas 3-pointers
The Mavs were forced to look for other ways to win games because of the called shots that stopped them from winning their fourth straight game last time out, and while that was painful to watch, it was also refreshing to watch. Ta. Dallas shot just 29 percent from 3-point range during their four-game winning streak, but they shot much better than that in OKC.
In the loss, the Mavericks made 12 of 29 long-range shots (41.4 %), but P.J. Washington's shot was only marginal. They went 1-of-7 from beyond the arc, and Dante Exum, who started at point guard in Doncic's place, went just 2-of-8 from the field in the loss.
If the Mavs are going to win this game, it has to be an all-hands-on-deck scenario, and Dallas' few deckhands just didn't bring enough ability to get it done.
19: Dallas turnover
In the end, the Mavericks weren't able to play a clean enough game to cause an upset. The Thunder won the turnover battle 19-13, scoring 34 points off Dallas' 19 turnovers.
Oklahoma City entered the game scoring a league-high 20 points off opponent turnovers per game. Exum and Irving, the team's primary ball handlers, each turned the ball over four times in the loss.
