Completing a home-and-home series after capturing a 103-94 victory over the Grizzlies on Wednesday, the Mavericks (1-5) faced a 20-point halftime deficit before staging an epic comeback and running out of steam late in the fourth quarter. The Mavs will now attempt to atone for Thursday’s loss with a better effort for four quarters at home, welcoming in the upstart Philadelphia 76ers. And after claiming their first win of the season Wednesday at home, the Mavericks will look for similar success in front of their own fans Saturday night.
“I thought in the second half we did a great job of battling back, but it was the first half that helped put us in that deficit,” versatile forward Harrison Barnes said after scoring a team-high 22 points and grabbing 11 rebounds during Thursday’s loss.