Monta Ellis was incredible for the Mavericks, tallying 30 points and nine assists while shooting 11-of-14 from the floor. He was one of seven Dallas players to score in double-figures, with Jae Crowder representing the team's second-leading scorer with 18.
Nick Young led the Lakers with 21 points off the bench. It was truly an ugly performance for Los Angeles, as its guards simply could not keep Ellis and company from getting to the rim.
The Mavericks shot 52 percent, racking up 52 points in the paint. They also hit on 13 of their 27 three-point attempts.
Let's break down what went right for Dallas and what went wrong for LA.
Monta Ellis Played Possessed
From the opening tip, Ellis knew he had to be in attack mode, and he was. He ate whomever the Lakers put in front of him alive, slicing his way to the rim and finishing with very little resistance from Los Angeles' frontcourt.
When Monta wasn't scoring, he was still beating his man off the dribble, forcing the defense to collapse. He would then proceed to dump the ball off to the open man for the easy bucket.
Lather, rinse, repeat.
It was blatantly obvious early in the game that the Lakers could not stop Ellis from getting to the cup, and Dallas took advantage of it for the entirety of the contest.
Poor Steve Blake never had a chance.
Dallas Has Some Depth
How about the bench for the Mavericks tonight?
DeJuan Blair came in and posted 10 points, eight rebounds, four assists and five steals. He was a monster on the glass and demonstrated great anticipation by frequently jumping into passing lanes and deflecting balls that resulted in transition points for the Mavericks.
