DALLAS (AP) — Kristaps Porzingis had 24 points, 13 rebounds and five blocks, and Dallas hit a season-high 19 3-pointers as the Mavericks routed the Charlotte Hornets 120-96 on Monday night to sweep a back-to-back without All-Star guard Luka Doncic.
Porzingis led the Mavericks (14-13) to a 70-43 halftime lead, securing his sixth double-double of the season with 22 points and 12 rebounds before the break. The 7-foot-3 Latvian played only eight minutes in the second half to finish with 25.
Trey Burke scored a season-high 22 points and Tim Hardaway Jr. had 19 off the bench. They combined on 6-for-9 shooting from 3-point range before halftime as Dallas, which won 103-84 on Sunday night at Oklahoma City, snapped a five-game home losing streak with its largest winning margin of the season.
The Hornets (15-14), who opened a six-game road trip, their longest of the season, were led by Terry Rozier and Kelly Oubre Jr. with 20 points each. Rozier played his first game after missing four while in the NBA’s COVID-19 protocol.
Charlotte played its fifth straight game without guard LaMelo Ball, who is still in the league’s health and safety protocol.
Dallas scored the first 10 points while Charlotte missed its first seven field-goal attempts. The Mavericks led by 30 in the closing seconds of the first half (70-40).
Doncic retwisted an ankle Friday night at Indiana. The Mavericks were 0-4 without the 22-year-old Slovenian before Sunday’s win.
The Hornets did get back forwards PJ Washington and Nick Richards from non-COVID-19 illnesses. Neither center Mason Plumlee nor forward Jalen McDaniels are out of the health and safety protocol and were assigned to Greensboro of the G League for conditioning and rehab.
Charlotte plays at the San Antonio on Wednesday.
