Just over a minute and a half into the game, the biggest acquisition of the season so far, Rajon Rondo, left the game and did not return due to a head injury suffered at the hands (or in this case, knees) of Richard Jefferson. However, Dallas still pulled away with the victory.
The Magic severely underperformed in the first half, trailing 66-41 at halftime. Orlando gave the Mavericks a scare in the middle of the fourth quarter, trimming the lead to just eight.
The star for Dallas tonight was Monta Ellis, who scored 25 points and had his highest assist total of the season at 13. He also added three steals and shot 11 of 20 from the field.
The Magic rolled out interesting rotations towards the end of the game. Starters Elfrid Payton and Nikola Vucevic barely played the final quarter. It is strange since Vucevic posted 17 points and 16 rebounds on 8 of 13 shooting. The final rotation ended with Willie Green, Channing Frye, and Maurice Harkless headlining the group. This continues the trend of head-scratching rotations from Coach Jacque Vaughn who is in the hot seat right now.
With the win, the Mavericks jump ahead of the San Antonio Spurs for sixth in the West. Orlando drops to 15-35, which is third worst in the East.
The Magic play at Oklahoma City on February 2nd as their next game, and the Mavericks play the lowly Minnesota Timberwolves on Monday, February 2nd, in Dallas.