NBA highlights on March 26: Mavs take triple storm to Sacramento

The Dallas Mavericks beat the Sacramento Kings 132-96 at Golden 1 Center in Sacramento, California, on Tuesday, securing their fifth straight win and replacing the opponents in sixth place in the Western Conference.

Both teams are among the league's top five in both shooting and scoring 3-pointers this season. Such offensive reliance on perimeter firepower means they are as good at turning the game into a long-gone conclusion early by exploding from downtown, as they are at painfully watching their deficit grow quickly with a series of bricks behind the arc.

The Mavericks had superb shooting from outside the 3-point line on Tuesday, as they made 22 of their 39 attempts. By contrast, the Kings went as poorly as 11-for-30 from the outside. They were particularly cold in the second half during which the team missed 12 of their 16 triples. As a result, the Mavericks outscored the Kings 74-43 in the third and fourth quarters combined.

The Mavericks had four players who knocked down four triples at over 40 percent in Tuesday's game. It's not surprising for Luka Doncic or Kyrie Irving to shoot like this, but when P.J. Washington and Derrick Jones Jr. combined to go 8-for-12 behind the arc – the two made only 12 3-pointers out of 60 attempts in the previous nine games – the Kings' defensive policy fell through.

That's why the Kings' defenders shouldn't be criticized too much for not being able to stop Doncic from getting 19 points in the second period or allowing 12 points by Irving in the third quarter. Both took at least two defenders each to contain when in possession of the ball, and that didn't mean the Kings could leave the other open. With their passing abilities, one extra pass could easily lead to an open 3-pointer. Both Jones and Washington took most of these chances.

However, poor 3-point shooting performance was not the only reason behind the Kings' loss on Tuesday night. They shot as many as 39 triples per game this season, but were limited to only 30 attempts against the Mavericks who continued to close out defensively in the second half. They were encouraged to do so by the Kings' disappointing work in finishing next to the rim.

The Kings scored only 38 points in the paint at a poor rate of 41.3 percent. Their starting center Domantas Sabonis missed five of his seven shots there. De’Aaron Fox and Malik Monk both tried to charge the hoop more, but the two combined to shoot no better than 9-for-20. The Mavericks averaged only 4.7 blocks per game this season, the ninth-fewest of all 30 teams. Neither are they out of the bottom 10 in points allowed per game or defensive rating. Nonetheless, the Kings' poor offense in the paint made Daniel Gafford and Dereck Lively II look like Wilt Chamberlain and Bill Russell.

Other games on Tuesday (away teams come first):

Golden State Warriors 113-92 Miami Heat

The Warriors avoided their third loss after beating the Heat at the Kaseya Center in Miami, Florida. Klay Thompson replaced Brandin Podziemski in the starting lineup and drained six triples out of 14 attempts to score a game-high 28 points for the Warriors to win. Jonathan Kuminga and Andrew Wiggins combined to go 9-for-11 in the paint to contribute 18 and 17 points respectively.

The Heat were held back by their low efficiency on the offensive end which was reflected in their 40.2-percent FG rate and 24.2-percent 3-point rate. They got only 37 points in the second half, being outscored by the Warriors by 23 points.

Los Angeles Lakers 128-124 Milwaukee Bucks

The Lakers lacked LeBron James in Tuesday's game at Fiserv Forum in Milwaukee, Wisconsin, but they managed to beat the Bucks after two overtimes (OTs) thanks to the dominant performances by Anthony Davis, D'Angelo Russell and Austin Reaves. Davis dropped a big double-double of 34 points and 23 rebounds, including seven on the offensive glass. He also had four blocks, including one on Damian Lillard to drag the contest into the second OT.

Russell made five triples out of 12 attempts and every of the court-high 10 free throws he earned to contribute 29 points in addition to 12 assists. Reaves matched him in points, but he scored a triple-double that included 14 rebounds and 10 assists. He joined Davis and Rui Hachimura to become the third Laker to reach double digits in rebounds in this game.

Oklahoma City Thunder 119-112 New Orleans Pelicans

The Thunder defeated the Pelicans at Smoothie King Center in New Orleans, Louisiana, on Tuesday, becoming the second team in the West with 50 wins. Shai Gilgeous-Alexander (SGA), Jalen Williams and Josh Giddey all scored over 20 points, making sure that their at-most 20-point lead translated into a victory.

The Pelicans came back to lead by five points (112-107) when there were less than four minutes left in the fourth period. However, SGA, Williams and Giddey launched a 12-0 run to wrap up the game. The three got nine points, two assists and two offensive rebounds in that run.