The Dallas Mavericks survived a wild one Monday night, snatching a 125-122 victory from the Indiana Pacers in one of their most entertaining games this season. Cooper Flagg was absolutely incredible, dropping 43 points on 16-of-25 shooting, grabbing 10 rebounds, dishing six assists, and swiping three steals. Not to be outdone, Kyrie Irving poured in 35 points, hitting seven clutch 3-pointers to help seal the deal.
Digging Out of the Early Hole
This game didn’t start pretty for Dallas. They opened sluggishly, spending most of the first quarter just trying to dig themselves out of an early hole. Flagg was clearly the Mavericks’ best player, scoring nine points with five boards, two assists, and three steals on 4-of-6 shooting. But the rest of the team? Not so much. Kyrie started a cold 1-for-4, Caleb Martin missed both his shots, and the team as a whole shot just 40 percent from the field and a miserable 27.3 percent from downtown. Meanwhile, Indiana was just cooking, hitting 55 percent from the field and 57.1 percent from three. Pascal Siakam was perfect from the floor for nine points, and Aaron Nesmith drained both his threes. Indiana led 31-26 after one, and honestly, Flagg’s activity was the only thing keeping Dallas even close.
The second quarter saw Dallas find a bit more offense, but Siakam completely took over for the Pacers. Kyrie finally got going, hitting three triples and reaching 15 points by halftime, while Flagg continued to create as both a scorer and passer. Walter Clayton Jr. also gave Dallas some good minutes. But it wasn’t enough to string together stops. Siakam just kept answering every Dallas run, finishing the half with 26 points on an insane 8-of-9 shooting and hitting five of his six threes. Indiana shot a lights-out 60 percent from the field and 56.3 percent from three in the half. P.J. Washington, on the other hand, was really struggling, going 2-of-10 from the floor. Andrew Nembhard hit a turnaround jumper at the buzzer, sending the Pacers into halftime up 66-56. Trailing by 10 points after that kind of performance? Rough.
The Second-Half Flagg-ening
The game finally flipped in the third quarter, and you know who the biggest reason was? Cooper Flagg. He exploded for 14 points in the period, hitting his turnaround jumper, attacking the rim hard, and making much better reads. The Mavericks steadily erased that double-digit deficit. Kyrie stayed absolutely red-hot, adding two more threes to his tally. Even P.J. Washington finally found some rhythm, getting a tip-in and a three to go. Dallas also tightened up defensively, forcing turnovers and getting much better activity from Clayton and Naji Marshall. Siakam, who was torching Dallas in the first half, cooled off significantly. Flagg just kept pushing late in the quarter with back-to-back finger rolls, cutting the deficit to two. What a comeback!
In the end, Flagg and Irving powered that second-half rally and made enough plays late to escape with the win. It was a true display of grit after a really tough start.
This article was created with AI assistance and published under Seattle On Tap’s editorial standards. See our Editorial Policy.
Originally reported by Mavs Moneyball.
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