DALLAS (AP) — O.J. Mayo scored 13 points, rookie Jae Crowder added 12 and the Dallas Mavericks beat the New Orleans Hornets 87-74 on Monday night.
The Mavericks were without All-Star forward Dirk Nowitzki (right knee surgery) and center Chris Kaman (right calf strain).
Dallas jumped out to a 13-2 lead and stretched the lead to 20 in the second half.
Top overall pick Anthony Davis grabbed 17 rebounds, and Ryan Anderson and Robin Lopez each had 14 points for New Orleans, which never led in the game.
Hornets rookie guard Austin Rivers left the game in the second quarter with a sprained right ankle. The team said Rivers had X-rays and those came back negative.
