DALLAS — Monta Ellis had no question he would play Tuesday night.
The Dallas Mavericks’ guard came back after injuring his left ankle on Sunday. He scored 20 points in 27 minutes, made a game-high four steals and helped hold the Washington Wizards’ Bradley Beal to 10 points.
Dallas won 114-87, handing the Wizards their most lopsided loss of the season.
“Most guys in this league wouldn’t even think about playing two nights later,” Mavericks coach Rick Carlisle said. “He’s a remarkable athlete and a remarkable guy. To top it off, he gave us a big burst of scoring.”
Nine of Ellis’ points came in the final 2:35 of the second quarter, when the Mavericks outscored the Wizards 36-21 for a 63-45 halftime lead. He shot 8 of 15 without playing in the fourth quarter.
“I was going to play regardless,” Ellis said. “I just had to ice it. The great thing about it is it didn’t swell on me.”
Chandler Parsons had 14 points, Dirk Nowitzki added 13 despite shooting 2 for 8 from the field, and Rajon Rondo had 11 points and five assists.
Off the bench, Richard Jefferson scored a season-high 14 points. Charlie Villanueva also had 14.
The Wizards’ Paul Pierce, like Nowitzki, is in his 17th season.
Pierce said, “It’s not the Dirk of four or five years ago, where he dominates you throughout the game. He still has those moments, but this team is built around depth.”
Washington’s John Wall had 11 points and eight assists. Kris Humphries also scored 11, and Beal and Marcin Gortat had 10 apiece.
Beal made only four of 14 field goal attempts (29 percent).
“The key to the game was Ellis’ defense on Beal,” Carlisle said. “Beal is a dynamic scorer (averaging better than 15 points per game), and he’s one of the real keys to their team. Monta really took the challenge.”
The Mavericks scored 33 points off 23 turnovers, extended their winning streak to three games and ended the Wizards’ three-game winning streak.
“Turnovers played the biggest part. When we try to do too much individually, we get ourselves in trouble,” Washington coach Randy Wittman said. “You can’t do it against a good team. They beat us up both ends of the floor.”
The Mavericks’ 10 straight wins over Washington represent their longest active winning streak against any team.
Dallas led 34-30 with 8:49 to play in the second quarter. Then the Mavericks went on an 11-2 run. The final four points were scored by Jefferson, who had 10 in the quarter.
Dallas led 89-64 after three. The Mavericks’ 31 fast-break points all came in the first three periods.
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TIP-INS
Wizards: Washington finished 12-4 in December. The franchise’s best month ever was February 1969, when the team was neither the Wizards nor in Washington. The Baltimore Bullets went 13-3 that month on the way to the Eastern Division championship. … The Wizards’ only other month with 12 or more wins was December 2006, also 12-4. … Nene (ankle) left the game in the third quarter and didn’t return. … Previously, the Wizards’ biggest loss this season was 113-87 against Cleveland on Nov. 26.
Mavericks: Rondo got his 1,000th career assist when the Mavericks scored the first basket 1:02 into the game. On a fast break, he threw a bounce pass to Ellis. … Nowitzki’s two field goals tied Robert Parish for 14th place on the NBA career list at 9,614. … Raymond Felton (sprained ankle) and rookie Dwight Powell each scored their first points for Dallas in their second game with the team. … The Mavericks had only seven turnovers, none in the second half.
APPROACH THE BENCH
All 13 Dallas players scored, and the bench outscored Washington’s 54-40.
PITCHING AND PIGSKIN
The Los Angeles Dodgers’ three-time Cy Young Award winner, Clayton Kershaw, attended the game. He’s a Dallas native. … Ellis took time during his postgame interview to make a case for the Dallas Cowboys with a fan of the defending Super Bowl champion Seattle Seahawks.
UP NEXT
Wizards: Friday night at Oklahoma City.
Mavericks: Friday night at Boston.
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