The Dallas Mavericks entered the first night of a home game against the undermanned Orlando Magic, who were playing without their rising star Paolo Banchero. With him out of the lineup, Dallas didn't have many excuses to drop out of this game and needed a win after their disappointing loss to the Houston Rockets on Halloween night.

Without Banchero, the Magic rolled out Jalen Suggs, Kentavious Caldwell-Pope, Franz Wagner, rookie Tristan da Silva and Wendell Carter Jr. Carter was a game-deciding decision because of knee tendonitis. Dallas started with its usual five players: Luka Doncic, Kyrie Irving, Klay Thompson, PJ Washington and Daniel Gafford.

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The Mavericks wanted to get off to a fast start offensively. In five games this season, they have never scored 30 points in an opening quarter. Gafford had six of Dallas' first eight points, but Orlando had the early lead. Four minutes into the game, the Magic had a 15-8 lead.

A layup by Naji Marshall with a few minutes left gave the Mavs their first lead of the game, 20-19; He then served Dereck Lively II with an alley-oop to extend the lead to three. Luka Doncic got off to a better start than last with 14 points on 5/9 shooting. Dallas also had the highest-scoring opening period of the season, going 30-22 into the second round.

Kyrie Irving started the second quarter with a contested three-pointer in the corner to push the lead to double digits, and Quentin Grimes followed up with a three-pointer from the opposite corner to cap the 13-0 run. The offense then came to a standstill for a few minutes and Doncic sat on the bench. When he got back into the game, the offense picked up speed again while the defense stayed in lockdown, adding 22 points after a three-pointer from Doncic.

Orlando simply couldn't maintain a consistent offense without Banchero. On every possession they had to fight to get a clean shot and even when it was open they couldn't convert. The Magic trailed by 25 points at halftime and faced a 65-40 deficit. Doncic had 25 points himself, finally getting off to the great start we'd been waiting for, while no one had more than eight for Orlando.

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The Mavericks decided to involve Klay Thompson more in the second half since the score was already out of control. They gave him the ability to handle the ball in pick-and-rolls, and he knocked down mid-range shots at a high rate, something you don't see much in the NBA anymore. Daniel Gafford also received a lot of blunt looks. Wendell Carter left the game with the knee soreness he was dealing with, leaving Mo Wagner and Jonathan Isaac as the Magic's centers, and Dallas began to take advantage of the attack on the glass. A free throw from Doncic after a few offensive rebounds put the Mavs up 30 points midway through the third period.

Even when the Dallas offense faltered and they faltered in the third quarter, they still held tight defensively, holding Orlando to 61 points through three quarters and holding a 27-point lead.

Klay Thompson didn't hit his first three-pointer until the first minute of the fourth quarter, bringing them back up to 30 points. Jason Kidd was substituted on the bench long before the end and wanted to get to the finish despite the Magic. With a small lead at the end, the Mavericks won 108:85.

It was the perfect night to get the starters out early as this was the first night of a back-to-back game with high tactics tomorrow against the Indiana Pacers. Luka Doncic played 31 minutes and no one else played more than 28.

Luka Doncic's 25 points in the first half would make the big difference as he would finish with 32 points, nine rebounds and seven assists. Kyrie Irving added 17 points and Daniel Gafford had an effective night with 18 points and eight rebounds. He and Dereck Lively II were outstanding in this game, dominating on the glass after being embarrassed in that area against Houston.

The Dallas defense held Franz Wagner to just 13 points on 6/15 shooting and he was their leading scorer before the substitutes arrived. Jalen Suggs and Mo Wagner each had 10 points.

If there's one area the Mavericks can't exploit, it's that they've turned it over too often, albeit against a good defense. Luka Doncic had four turnovers, Daniel Gafford had three and almost every player who checked in had at least one turnover as they finished the game with 18 turnovers.

Dallas will play at home against the Indiana Pacers for the second night in a row on Monday night.

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