Houston Rockets (5-9, 14th in the Western Conference) vs. Dallas Mavericks (8-7, seventh in the Western Conference)
Dallas; Saturday, 9 p.m. EST
BOTTOM LINE: Luka Doncic leads Dallas into a matchup with Houston. He’s 10th in the NBA averaging 26.8 points per game.
The Mavericks are 2-0 against Southwest Division opponents. Dallas ranks sixth in the Western Conference with 35.9 defensive rebounds per game led by Doncic averaging 8.9.
The Rockets are 3-7 in Western Conference play. Houston has a 1-4 record against opponents under .500.
The teams play for the second time this season. The Mavericks won the last meeting 113-100 on Jan. 4. Doncic scored 33 points to help lead Dallas to the win.
TOP PERFORMERS: Doncic leads the Mavericks scoring 26.8 points per game, and is averaging 10.0 rebounds and 9.6 assists. Doncic is averaging 10.2 rebounds and 25.3 points per game over the last 10 games for Dallas.
Victor Oladipo ranks second on the Rockets averaging 22.3 points and is adding 4.0 rebounds. Eric Gordon is averaging 1.7 made 3-pointers and scoring 12.5 points over the last 10 games for Houston.
LAST 10 GAMES: Mavericks: 6-4, averaging 111 points, 46.1 rebounds, 23.7 assists, six steals and 5.4 blocks per game while shooting 46.0% from the field. Their opponents have averaged 110 points on 44.6% shooting.
Rockets: 3-7, averaging 106.7 points, 43.4 rebounds, 22.6 assists, 7.7 steals and 6.9 blocks per game while shooting 44.2% from the field. Their opponents have averaged 109.8 points on 45.1% shooting.
INJURIES: Mavericks: Maxi Kleber: out (health and safety protocols), Dorian Finney-Smith: out (health and safety protocols), Dwight Powell: out (health and safety protocols), Josh Richardson: out (health and safety protocols).
Rockets: Kevin Porter Jr.: out (personal), Dante Exum: out (calf), John Wall: out (knee), Christian Wood: out (ankle), Danuel House: out (health and safety protocols).
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The Associated Press created this story using technology provided by Data Skrive and data from Sportradar.
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