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The Dallas Mavericks make the short trip to Houston to take on the Rockets in a Southwest Division showdown from the Western Conference on Friday night. The Mavs are 16-11 on the season and sit atop the division standings. The Rockets have been a surprise team thus far and are 13-12 on the season. The opening tap is scheduled for 8:00 PM EST.
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The Dallas Mavericks lost their second straight game on Wednesday night, falling to the red-hot LA Clippers 120-111. The Mavs fell behind early and a second-half rally fell short. Dallas All-Star Luka Doncic continued his MVP-like play with 38 points to go along with 10 rebounds and 10 assists. The triple-double was Doncic's sixth of the season but his franchise record of 11 straight games with 30 or more points ended in the loss. The Mavs got 21 points from Tim Hardaway Jr. and 19 points from Derrick Jones Jr. The team continues to play without All-Star Kyrie Irving, missing his sixth straight game with an injured foot, and also played this one without center Dereck Lively II and guard Josh Green.
“When you’re short-handed, you’ve got to make shots,” Dallas coach Jason Kidd said. “We started to make shots there at the end of the second.”

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The Mavs have been led by an efficient offense that runs through the skilled hands of Doncic. They are sixth in the league in points per game this season. They are 18th in the league in field goal percentage and 17th in 3-point shooting percentage. More importantly, the Mavs are first in the NBA in turnovers per game. They are also second in the league in 3-point field goals made per game. Defensively, the Mavs are 21st in points allowed per game. They are 23rd in defensive field goal percentage and 19th in 3-point defense. The Mavs have struggled a bit on the glass, ranking 19th in the league in total rebounding.
Key Injuries: Lively, Irving, Green and Doncic will all miss Friday night's game.