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The Dallas Mavericks broke an NBA record Sunday by racing to a 77-27 halftime lead against the short-handed Los Angeles Clippers at the Staples Center.
The 50-point halftime margin was the largest in NBA history during the shot-clock era, which started in 1954-55.
The previous high was 47 points, on Nov. 2, 1991, when the Warriors led the Kings by 47 points, 88-41, at the half, according to Elias Sports Bureau.
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The Clippers were without Kawhi Leonard, who suffered injuries to the mouth Friday and needed eight stitches after an accidental hit by teammate Serge Ibaka. Marcus Morris also missed the game with a knee injury.
© Jayne Kamin-Oncea, USA TODAY SportsThe Mavericks only needed Luka Doncic for 26 minutes in their 51-point rout of the Clippers.
The Clippers did not reach 20 points until Paul George hit a jumper with 5:01 left in the second quarter. Paul George scored 13 of the Clippers' 27 points in the first half.
At the end of the second quarter, the Mavericks were shooting 58% from the field and had hit nine 3-pointers. The Clippers missed 18 of 19 3-point attempts and shot 25% from the floor, their worst 3-point field goal percentage in a single half over the past 25 seasons, according to ESPN State and Information Research.
© Kyusung Gong, APThe Mavericks only needed Luka Doncic for 26 minutes in their 51-point rout of the Clippers.
The Mavericks (1-2) won 124-73 to hand the Clippers (2-1) their first loss of the season.
Contact Analis Bailey at aabailey@usatoday.com or on Twitter @analisbailey.
This article originally appeared on USA TODAY: Mavericks crush short-handed Clippers, set halftime record with 50-point margin