The Mavericks fell to 6-2 at American Airlines Center with their 120-114 loss to the Washington Wizards on Saturday night.

It was the first of two home games against improved Eastern Conference teams as Cleveland comes to town on Monday.

Here’s our day-after observations about the Mavericks’ loss to the Wizards.

DEFENSE MORE LIKE PICKET FENCE: The Wizards got through and around the Mavericks’ defense all night long, but particularly in the fourth quarter, when they hit 10-of-16 shots (62.5 percent) and half of their six 3-pointers. The Mavericks couldn’t get stops when they needed them. And it really was like that throughout the game.

AND ABOUT THAT OFFENSE: Since we’re on the subject of the fourth quarter, the Mavericks hit just 7-of-23 shots (30.4 percent) and more than half of those shots (12) were from 3-point range. When the game was on the line, the Wizards upgraded their determination and their execution. The Mavericks could not match that upgrade.

ABOUT THAT REBOUNDING: It doesn’t look good on the surface. They were outrebounded 43-35 for the game. It was even worse at crunch time. In the fourth quarter, the Wizards had 15 rebounds. The Mavericks had seven. That’s way too much of a disparity, especially for a team that shot 30 percent from the field. The Mavericks also gave up two crucial offensive rebounds to Daniel Gafford (more on that below) in the fourth quarter.

BEST OF THE BUNCH: The Mavericks always feel like they have the best big man on the floor when Kristaps Porzingis is playing. That wasn’t the case on Saturday. Daniel Gafford, Washington’s workmanlike center, had 14 points and 10 rebounds, four on the offensive end, two of which came with the game on the line late in the fourth quarter. Those two extra possessions led to five points for the Wizards. They won by six.

BY THE NUMBERS: The Mavericks had one great 12-minute stretch when they won the second quarter 33-20 to go ahead 69-61 at halftime. Then things went south. They were outscored 59-45 in the second half. What kept the Mavericks in the game was that they had only seven turnovers (the Wizards had 15). But they made just 16-of-22 free throws (72.7 percent). They were outscored by five at the line by the Wizards (21-26, 80.6 percent). In a close game, those numbers were very, very costly.

Twitter: @ESefko

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