Mavs reschedule Sunday start time to avoid conflict with Cowboys playoff game

DALLAS – Don’t worry, diehard Dallas fans. You can take a break this weekend.

Dallas Mavericks announced Thursday that Sunday’s game against the Los Angeles Clippers will now start at 1:30 PM instead of 6:30 PM.

According to Basketball Communications Vice President Scott Tomlin, the team made the move so that the game would not be played at the same time as the Dallas Cowboys NFC Divisional Round playoff game against the San Francisco 49ers.

The Cowboys-49ers game is due to start at 5:30 pm.

“We have requested a timing change for our game so sports fans in North Texas can enjoy both games on Sunday,” Tomlin said.

The Mavericks are currently on a three-game losing streak and sit 5th in the Western Conference.

Over 31.2 million people watched the Cowboys defeat the Tampa Bay Buccaneers on Monday Night Football, making this Disney game the most watched NFL playoff game ever.

The Cowboys-Bucs match is also the most played Disney game in the NFL since Super Bowl XL in February 2006, according to an ESPN press release. According to Nielsen, Super Bowl XL drew 90.7 million viewers.

With the exception of three Disney Super Bowls, the Cowboys-Buccaneers is the second most played NFL game in Disney history.

According to ESPN, top local markets followed the game:

1. Dallas-Fort Worth
2. San Antonio
3. Kansas City
4. Austin
5. Tampa St. Pete
6. Philadelphia
7. Sacramento
8. Norfolk
9. Jacksonville
10. Providence

Dallas and San Francisco kick off Sunday, January 22nd at 5:30 pm PT. at Levy Stadium in Santa Clara, California. The Cowboys are underdogs with four points. The Cowboys also hold an official party outside of AT&T Stadium.