There is a special kind of irritation in winning the bench comparison by 28 points and losing the basketball game. Dallas got 38 points from its reserves to San Antonio’s 10 Wednesday night at Frost Bank Center, yet the Spurs walked away with a 112-111 victory. The Mavericks’ second unit supplied a genuine recovery resource.
It just spent too much of the evening repairing damage created by the players who started it.
Naji Marshall was the loudest repairman. He scored 22 points on 9-for-12 shooting, including a perfect 3-for-3 from beyond the arc, and his fourth quarter was the central engine of Dallas’ comeback. His three-pointer at 9:46 cut San Antonio’s lead to 94-87.
A two-point basket at 8:45 made it 89-94, and another three at 8:17 pulled Dallas within 92-94. Later, after the Spurs had rebuilt a 111-108 advantage, Marshall hit a three-pointer at 1:41 to tie the game.
That stretch was more than bench scoring in the abstract. Marshall repeatedly gave Dallas an answer when the deficit threatened to become permanent. His final three came from Cooper Flagg, who found him after San Antonio had taken the lead on a Victor Wembanyama tip-in.
Marshall then blocked De’Aaron Fox’s pullup at 1:29 and collected the defensive rebound, giving Dallas the ball with the score still tied. The sequence also included his bad-pass turnover at 1:24. A strong closing run can contain both the rescue and the mistake; Marshall’s night certainly did.
Walter Clayton Jr. played a different role. His eight points were less important than the five assists he delivered without a turnover. He helped Dallas create the fourth-quarter run rather than merely adding to it.
Clayton found Marshall for a pullup at 7:03, then fed P.J. Washington for the three-pointer at 5:38 that gave Dallas its first lead since the opening period. At 2:54, he assisted Flagg’s basket that pulled the Mavericks within 107-106.
Clayton also kept one possession alive when Dallas needed every extra chance. With the game tied 100-100, Washington missed a running layup at 5:48. Clayton rebounded, missed a tip and recovered the ball again.
The possession did not end in Clayton’s hands. Washington converted the next opportunity, making the three-pointer that put Dallas ahead 103-100. Clayton’s work yielded a lead when Washington made the three.
The two offensive rebounds and ensuing assist were a substantial contribution from a reserve guard.
His plus-3 rating and Marshall’s plus-5 fit the evening without explaining all of it. Plus/minus is a lineup number, not a personal accounting of every basket. Morez Johnson Jr.’s plus-1 deserves the same fair reading.
He scored eight points, made three of four free throws, grabbed three rebounds and committed no turnovers in 18 minutes. In the fourth, he converted both free throws at 7:41 and added another at 6:26, helping Dallas stay attached while San Antonio’s size continued to cause problems.
