Anthony Davis scored 27 points as the Dallas Mavericks eliminated the Sacramento Kings with a 120-106 win in the NBA Western Conference play-in tournament on Wednesday night.
The Mavericks maintained control throughout the contest at Golden 1 Center in Sacramento, leading by 23 at halftime and never allowing the Kings to close the gap meaningfully.
Dallas will now visit the Memphis Grizzlies on Friday for the final Western Conference play-in game, with the winner earning the No. 8 seed and a first-round matchup against the top-seeded Oklahoma City Thunder.
Davis, playing just his 10th game for the Mavericks since being traded from the Los Angeles Lakers, added nine rebounds and three blocks.
Klay Thompson contributed 23 points on 8-of-11 shooting, including 5-of-7 from three-point range, a stark contrast to his scoreless showing in last year’s play-in game with Golden State against the same Kings side.
P.J. Washington and Brandon Williams each added 17 points for Dallas, while Dante Exum chipped in 11. The Mavericks shot 49.4 percent from the field and hit 14 of 28 from beyond the arc.
DeMar DeRozan led the Kings with 33 points and seven rebounds. Zach LaVine scored 20 and added nine assists, while Domantas Sabonis contributed 11 points, 13 rebounds and five assists. Devin Carter had 10 points off the bench.
Sacramento committed 18 turnovers and shot 46.1 percent from the field. The Kings fell behind after a 44-point second quarter from Dallas, which included a 24-10 run and four consecutive Thompson three-pointers.
Davis closed the half with back-to-back triples to put Dallas up 71-48.
He opened the third quarter with another three-pointer to push the lead to 26 before the Kings responded with 10 straight points.
But the Mavericks regained momentum and carried a 99-81 lead into the final quarter.
With just under seven minutes remaining, Davis scored consecutive baskets to make it 107-85, effectively sealing the result and ending Sacramento’s season.
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