The game between the Dallas Mavericks and Minnesota Timberwolves had a playoff atmosphere about it. Both teams are fighting for playoff positions, with Mavs trying to beat out the Utah Jazz for home-court as the fourth seed and the Timberwolves trying to beat out the Denver Nuggets for the final automatic playoff spot as the sixth seed.
The game was chippy and came down to the wire where Dallas pulled away after big shots from Dorian Finney-Smith and Reggie Bullock to give the Mavs a 110-108 win. However, there was a hilarious missed call by the referees that undermined the highly-anticipated clash.
Timberwolves big-man Karl-Anthony Towns stripped Luka Doncic near the side court line and ended up stepping out of bounds to control the ball and pass it to his teammate. However, KAT’s foot was well clear of the side court line and out of bounds when he controlled the ball, but the referees bafflingly didn’t stop the play.
NBA referees tend to get a lot of hate because calls will always have to be against on team. This instance is a massive mistake on their part and partly inexcusable. KAT was clearly out of bounds in a very unambiguous way. This missed call was earlier in the game, but a similar mistake towards the end of the game could have been crucial for either team.
Ultimately, the game was decided by terrific shot-making by the Mavericks at the end of the game who saw a team performance lead them to the win. Doncic was outscored by four other Mavericks, as Dwight Powell led the Mavs in scoring.
The Timberwolves saw KAT have a 22-point game and Patrick Beverley have a gritty defensive game, but the Mavericks defense frustrated them all night. However, they kept it close all night and made a run in the fourth quarter to take a lead but ultimately fell short.
