SAN FRANCISCO – After a night to absorb the numerous body blows they suffered at the hands of the Golden StateLuka Warriors during Wednesday’s 112-87 Game 1 loss in the Western Conference Finals, the Dallas Mavericks walked away from that game with one lingering message to themselves.

They need to start draining the open looks they had at the basket.

“We were 11-for-48 from three and maybe eight of those are bad (shots),” guard Spencer Dinwiddie said. “So that means you’ve got 40 good looks at three (and) you at least want to hit 15, 16 of them.

“Five more threes (equals) 15 more points. You know, during the course of the game we were down about 20, which puts you in the game.”

That’s the mathematical narrative the Mavs are hoping to use as a springboard to success when they battle the Warriors in Game 2 of this best-of-seven series Friday at 8 p.m. at Chase Center.

Games 3 and 4 will be at American Airlines Center on Sunday and Tuesday, respectively.

Despite the Warriors firing in 56.1 percent of their shots in the series opener, the Mavs believe they could have won Game 1 had they converted their fair share of their open looks at the basket.

“We’ve got to make shots,” coach Jason Kidd said following Thursday’s practice session. “We shot 19 threes in the first quarter (and made just three of them). We got great shots.

“If we’re not going to make shots against the Warriors it’s going to be a long, long night. The defense can only hold up for so long if we’re not making shots, and (Wednesday) night we were not making shots.”

ReggieLuka Doncic and Reggie Bollock were each 3-of-10 from three-point territory, Jalen Brunson misfired on his five three-point tries, Davis Bertans missed his four attempts from three-point land, Dorian Finney-Smith was 1-of-3 from beyond the three-point arc, Maxi Kleber was 1-of-4 from behind the three-point stripe, Frank Ntilikina was 0-of-2 from three-point range, while Josh Green, Sterling Brown and Trey Burke each missed their lone attempt form downtown.

Other than the 3-of-7 showing Dinwiddie had from behind the three-point stripe, this was not a night to remember from downtown by the Mavs. Especially this the overwhelming majority of those misses were of the open look variety.

“Just knowing yourself as a shooter seeing that you missed some open looks, you wish you can get back and you can make,” Bullock said. “Our guys have been making those shots all year. It’s just a matter of finding our rhythm here.”

That sure was the case on one unforgettable possession in the first half Wednesday

“On one possession we had three (open looks from downtown),” Kidd said. “All good looks. If we get those shots again tomorrow night I believe we can make them.”

That’s what Bullock is banking on.

“Same shots, same rhythm,” he said. “We’ll knock them down the next game.

“We got  a lot of open three-point shots. So it’s still a confidence builder for us to be able to go into the next game to be able to shoot the same shots.”

And hopefully knock them down and knot this series at a game apiece.

DONCIC WILL ADJUST: Guard Spencer Dinwiddie expects point guard Luka Doncic to make the necessary adjustments he needs andLuka have a more productive performance in Game 2 than he had in Game 1.

“He’s just brilliant,” Dinwiddie said. “I think he’s seen every defense from probably playing professional overseas when he was younger.

“If you’ve seen it before, you’ve probably developed counters for it. So now it’s just about continuing to improve game-by-game, and he’s one of the best in the business at doing it.”

Doncic only scored two of his 20 points in the second half Wednesday, and was 6-of-18 from the field. It was the worst shooting performance of the playoffs by Doncic.

“I think every series has a different makeup, right, and this (Warriors’) team has its very clear distinct differences than the past two we’ve played,” Dinwiddie said. “One of the best parts about both Coach (Jason) Kidd and Luka are their ability to adjust and adapt, so I’m expecting us to do the same heading into Game 2.

“Obviously I think we have reason to be confident. I don’t think we’re going to shoot as poorly.”

GOT TO BE PHYSICAL: While watching the film of Game 1 with his players, coach Jason Kidd pointed out that the Warriors were the more physical team.

“We have to be physical,” Kidd said. “They were physical. They were the aggressors.

“When (the Mavs are physical) we’re going to win. It’s hard to win on the road.”

The Mavs also have to do a much better job on the boards as they got outrebounded by 18 (52-34) in Game 1.

JalenCenter Dwight Powell said the Mavs are “focusing on the principles that got us here. I think we kind of had some lapses in the first game in some of those areas.

“At the end if the day it’s a long series and we’ll learn a lot from this first game and try to make those adjustments.”

BRIEFLY: When asked his thoughts about coaching great players, coach Jason Kidd said: “All great players are coachable. They might growl or moan once in a while. But they’re all coachable and they all want to be coached.”. .Guard Jalen Brunson said the Mavs need to do a better job of finishing quarters if they want to win this series. “You’ve got to give them credit,” Brunson said of the Warriors. “They’re a great team. They’ve been a great team for a long time. They made a run (in Game 1), and we kind of knew that we needed to finish quarters better because we know in the third quarter they’re a great team. They come out firing and that’s usually when they do their damage.” The Warriors outscored the Mavs, 34-24, in the third quarter of Game 1 and toted an 88-69 lead into the fourth quarter. . .Although he was 6-of-16 from the field — including 0-of-5 from beyond the three-point line — Brunson said he was unfazed by the fact that the Warriors started the game with the much bigger Draymond Green guarding him. Brunson said: “I think for me and our team, as long as we stick to our game plan and do what we’re supposed to do, it will put us in the best position to be successful, no matter who’s guarding who.”

Twitter: @DwainPrice

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