DALLAS — For three quarters, the Nets and especially stars Kevin Durant and James Harden struggled to put the ball in the basket against the Mavericks Tuesday night at American Airlines Center while trailing by as much as 17 points in the third period. But when crunch time arrived, so did Durant and Harden as they put together a 16-4 run to take the lead midway through the fourth quarter.
In the end, it was Mavs star Luka Doncic who couldn’t get his shots to fall as the Nets pulled out a 102-99 victory to avoid what would have been their first back-to-back losses of the season and hang on to first place in the Eastern Conference.
Patty Mills hit a three-pointer to put the Nets on top for good with 2:48 left. Durant and Harden combined for 17 of the Nets’ 27 points in the final period, and they held the Mavs to 13 points. Doncic and Tim Hardaway Jr. each missed potential tying threes on the final possession.
The Mavs did a good job of throwing a lot of bodies at Durant, who topped the Nets (17-7) with 24 points and Harden, who added 23 points, nine rebounds and 12 assists. LaMarcus Aldridge scored 15, and James Johnson added 12.
Doncic led the Mavs (11-12) with 28 points and nine assists, Kristaps Porzingis totaled 17 points and 10 rebounds and Dorian Finney-Smith had 15 points.
Without Kyrie Irving, who has not complied with the New York City vaccine mandate and has been placed on leave by the organization because they won’t permit him to be a part-time player available only for road games, the Nets necessarily have shifted their emphasis from offense to defense. But Mavs coach Jason Kidd said he still considers them to be a formidable offense to defend.
"They’re still great," Kidd said. "They have two of the top 75 players to ever play the game. Are they different? I mean, Kyrie is one of the best, too.
"Unfortunately, Kyrie isn’t playing, but Harden and Durant cause a problem. They’re without one of their best players and also the health of their team with Joe Harris being banged up, but they continue to find a way to win."
The Nets were coming off a tough loss to the Bulls on Saturday, but coach Steve Nash praised the work his team has done to overcome the loss of Irving along with the injury that led to ankle surgery for Harris. "I’m proud of the way we’ve been able to find solutions and win games, and I think we’re knocking on the door of elevating our play into a little bit higher category," Nash said.
Although the Mavericks were off to a slow start with a .500 record, it became clear in the first half that they had much greater depth in terms of scoring punch. They were able to make things tough on Durant and Harden, holding them to a combined 15 first-half points. Complementary scorers LaMarcus Aldridge (13 points) and James Johnson (12) provided an offensive boost, but it wasn’t enough.
The Mavs built a 10-point lead early in the second quarter when the Nets had trouble stopping them in transition. The Nets cut their deficit to six points, but back-to-back threes by Doncic before halftime, the last of which went in off the backboard, pushed their halftime lead to a high of 62-50. That gave Doncic 18 points by himself in the half.
Porzingis scored seven points in a 9-4 surge that pushed the Mavs’ lead to 17 points early in the third quarter. The Nets cut their deficit to eight after a technical foul on Doncic for pushing Nic Claxton, but they generally struggled to generate offense until the final period.
