The Mavs and Nets met in Brooklyn on Wednesday night for a national TV showcase, and the two stars did not disappoint, as Luka Doncic and Kevin Durant dueled down the stretch in what became a thrilling finish thanks to a Dallas fourth quarter comeback.
The final minute of the game produced some of the best shot-making you’ll see anywhere, as both Doncic and Durant stared down hard contests and shrugged them off for go-ahead buckets. First it was Doncic, who hunted his mentor and teammate for the Slovenian national team Goran Dragic ruthlessly down the stretch, hitting a pair of extremely difficult fadeaways late in the shot clock.
LUKA GIVING THE MAVS THE LEAD!!!@dallasmavs | #MFFL pic.twitter.com/4ajxfDDcuc
— Bally Sports Southwest (@BallySportsSW) March 17, 2022
However, while Doncic was still barking at the Brooklyn crowd, Durant brought the ball up the floor and drilled a go-ahead three of his own over Spencer Dinwiddie’s outstretched hand, giving the Nets a 111-110 lead with 10 seconds to play.
KD FOR THE LEAD!
LIVE ON ESPN pic.twitter.com/9DSbdonqbn
— NBA (@NBA) March 17, 2022
Dallas called timeout and chose to bring the ball all the way up the floor to give Doncic room to survey the court and make a decision. As Durant came over with the late double, Doncic calmly bounced the ball to Dinwiddie, who tickled the twine at the buzzer to give Dallas a huge win on the road.
DINWIDDIE FOR THE WIN AGAIN
pic.twitter.com/TswYKFhPwd
— NBA TV (@NBATV) March 17, 2022
Dinwiddie finished the night with 22 points, as he continues to provide welcome shot-making assistance for Doncic, who had 37 points, nine rebounds, and nine assists in another sensational performance. On the other side, Durant had 23 points, 10 assists, and six rebounds, with Goran Dragic providing a lift with 21 points, but their fourth quarter cold spell that let the Mavs claw their way back into the game proved costly as they could only muster 20 points as a team in the final period.
With the loss, Brooklyn falls back to a full three games behind Toronto for the 7-seed and just one game up on Charlotte for 9th (as they picked up a win against Atlanta on Wednesday). On the other side, Dallas moves a half-game ahead of Utah in the standings to swipe the 4-seed in the West for now and the all-important homecourt advantage in a first-round series.
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