Kyrie Irving and backup player Daniel Gafford each scored 22 points, leading the Dallas Mavericks to a 110-93 victory over the San Antonio Spurs on Saturday night.
The Mavericks had lost four games in a row by a total of just eight points, but they controlled the game against the Spurs. Dallas was up by four points at halftime and then extended their lead to 24 after a strong third quarter, cruising to the win.
Luka Doncic contributed 16 points, six rebounds, and six assists, while Jaden Hardy scored 12 points for the Mavericks.
For the Spurs, Zach Collins had a season-high 20 points, Sandro Mamukelashvili added 14, Julian Champagnie scored 13, and Stephon Castle chipped in 12. The Spurs have now lost two games in a row.
San Antonio was missing star center Victor Wembanyama due to a knee contusion and guard Devin Vassell, who was out with a right foot injury issue.
Even without their two main players, the Spurs managed to fight back after falling behind by seven points early in the game.
They took a 28-23 lead after the first quarter when Champagnie made 2 of 3 free throws with just 0.2 seconds left in the period.
San Antonio led by as much as eight points early in the second quarter before the Mavericks took control. After Collins made two free throws to put the Spurs up 40-35 with 6:31 remaining in the half, Dallas quickly tied the game at 47 with a running layup from Gafford at 3:12.
The Mavericks continued their run with a basket from Naji Marshall followed by three-pointers from Irving and Doncic. The Spurs scored the last four points of the half to narrow the deficit to 55-51 by halftime.
Dallas opened the third quarter strong, and even though the Spurs pulled within six points on two free throws by Collins with 8:03 left, the Mavericks took full control from there. They went on a 12-3 run, which was capped by a tip-in layup from Irving, pushing their lead to 78-63.
