Finney-Smith's Season-High 17 Lead Mavs Past Kings 99-79
DALLAS (AP) - Rookie Dorian Finney-Smith scored a season-high 17 points, leading six Dallas players in double figures as the Mavericks beat the Sacramento Kings 99-79 Sunday.
After losing to Sacramento by 31 points at home 11 days ago, the Mavericks started fast. They made 11 of their first 15 shots and never trailed.
Deron Williams, Harrison Barnes and Wesley Matthews each scored 15 for Dallas.
DeMarcus Cousins scored 33 for Sacramento. The Kings were minus second-leading scorer Rudy Gay, who missed his third consecutive game because of a strained right hip flexor.
It was barely 30 degrees in Dallas and the start time was moved up three hours to 3 p.m. - that avoided a conflict with the Cowboys, whose home game against Tampa Bay was originally scheduled for the daytime and later switched to night. The Mavericks sold out for the 610th consecutive regular-season game.
Ty Lawson added 10 points for Sacramento.
The Kings scored just 14 points in the third quarter, a season low for a Mavericks opponent.
Devin Harris made a three-point play and a four-point play to cap a 12-2 Dallas run that gave the Mavs a 76-56 lead with 2:33 left in the third quarter. He had a season-high 14 points.
Following a 120-89 home loss to the Kings on Dec. 7, the Mavericks called a team meeting. They've won three of four at home since then and are 3-3 overall.
A 10-0 Mavericks run early in the second quarter opened a 38-26 lead and the Kings never got closer than nine for the remainder of the game.
TIP-INS
Kings: Cousins had 23 of Sacramento's 44 points in the first half. ... Williams had seven assists and passed current Dallas television analyst Derek Harper for 21st place on the NBA's all-time assists list with 6,584.
LET IT BEE
Kings coach Dave Joerger called for a truce in an ongoing spat between Cousins and the Sacramento Bee newspaper. Cousins recently confronted a Bee writer after a column that referenced the arrest of the 6-foot-11 star's brother.
"This guy is the face of our franchise," Joerger said. "He's done and said some things that he wishes he could do over. He has improved."
"I'm not justifying anything that he's done. What he did was excessive. But enough is enough."
TRIBUTE TO SAGER
The Mavericks joined the list of NBA teams to hold a moment of silence before their game in honor of TNT broadcaster Craig Sager, who died Thursday. Team owner Mark Cuban remembered Sager fondly before the game.
"Smiles are underrated," Cuban said. "Nice is underrated. Getting people to smile every time - that's something not a lot of people have been able to accomplish."
UP NEXT
Kings: Home against Portland on Tuesday. The Trail Blazers beat the Kings 122-120 in overtime on Nov. 11 in Portland.
Mavericks: At Denver on Monday to start a four-game road trip. Dallas plays six of its next seven on the road.
Copyright 2016 The Associated Press.
