Costly turnovers and missed opportunities doomed the Mavericks' late comeback, giving the Jazz a narrow victory in another heartbreaking finish.
SALT LAKE CITY — What began as a rare display of early composure unraveled into another familiar ending for the Dallas Mavericks on Thursday night.
After nearly six minutes without a turnover to open their rematch against the Utah Jazz, Dallas was eventually overwhelmed by its season-long ball-security issues in a 116-114 loss at Delta Center. The defeat marked the Mavericks’ 29th clutch game of the season, a growing sample defined by slim margins and costly mistakes.
Dallas finished with 21 turnovers, seven of them in the fourth quarter, a figure that proved decisive in a game that swung possession by possession. The final blow came with 56.9 seconds remaining, when Naji Marshall’s inbound pass toward Cooper Flagg was intercepted by Brice Sensabaugh and converted into a layup that pushed Utah firmly ahead.
Mavericks coach Jason Kidd pointed to execution and ball control as the difference.
“We just have to do the little things and take care of the ball,” Kidd said. “When you have 20-something turnovers, that’s tough to win in this league.”
The Mavericks’ challenge intensified late when Anthony Davis exited in the final two minutes after injuring his left hand. Davis finished with 21 points, 11 rebounds and four assists, but Dallas struggled to maintain offensive structure without him on the floor.
Asked what happened to Davis down the stretch, Kidd kept his answer brief.
“He hurt his left hand,” Kidd said. “That’s all we had at that point.”
Kidd later expanded on the critical sequence surrounding Davis’ injury, when Dallas elected not to foul after Davis signaled he was fine and Utah immediately scored.
“Smart players take a foul,” Kidd said. “That’s what we should have done. He felt fine. We come back down, we don’t take the foul, they get a layup, and then we have to take a timeout. That’s the play. We’ll learn from it. We can take a foul, side out, and sub. My players are my guys. They said he was fine, and I thought he was fine.”
Utah took advantage of every opening. Lauri Markkanen led all scorers with 33 points to go along with seven rebounds, repeatedly attacking the paint and anchoring the Jazz’s late surge. Keyonte George added 19 points, seven assists and three steals, while Sensabaugh scored 14 points and Kevin Love chipped in 10 points and 10 rebounds as Utah snapped a five-game losing streak.
Dallas briefly seized control midway through the fourth quarter, scoring on four straight possessions to take a 107-100 lead with 4:39 remaining after a Max Christie 3-pointer. Moments later, a potential Dallas three was waved off due to a violation, a turning point Kidd referenced afterward.
“It was a violation,” Kidd said. “They took the three away. We were still up two, and we just couldn’t get a basket. They did. But the group competed. They found a way to take a lead.”
From there, Utah closed on a 12-0 run, with Markkanen scoring three consecutive baskets to give the Jazz a 112-107 lead with 1:41 left. Utah scored on seven of its final nine possessions to secure the victory.
Despite the loss, Cooper Flagg delivered another standout performance in Utah, finishing with 26 points, 10 rebounds, eight assists and three steals, narrowly missing his first career triple-double. Kidd noted Flagg’s comfort in the building.
“He does play well here,” Kidd said. “I thought he was great. He got great looks, made plays for his teammates, and he was big for us offensively. He got us going in that second quarter.”
Flagg pointed to late execution and turnovers as the key shortcomings.
“It takes a collective effort to come together and finish the game,” Flagg said. “I thought we went cold down the stretch. We can do a better job executing offensively. We also have to get stops. They hit some tough shots, but we have to make a stand.”
On the turnover disparity, Flagg was direct.
“Twenty to nine turnovers is tough to overcome,” he said. “A lot of them are self-inflicted. Careless, not really forced. We just have to keep working on cleaning that up and being smarter.”
Klay Thompson provided a lift off the bench in his 900th career game, scoring 23 points and knocking down six 3-pointers. The milestone carried personal significance for the veteran guard.
“It’s awesome,” Thompson said. “A dream come true. My next goal is 1,000. I’m grateful to still be playing, playing at a high level, and having fun.”
Thompson also acknowledged the difficulty of closing the game without Davis available.
“That’s a go-to guy late in games,” Thompson said. “High post, favorite spots, rise up over anyone. That was tough. We probably need to get more organized late. We’re a young team, so there will be growing pains.”
Utah established control early by attacking the rim, scoring 24 of its 34 first-quarter points in the paint and igniting a 22-6 run. The Jazz led by as many as 14 in the second quarter, extending the margin to 53-39 after Markkanen capped a 15-5 run with a dunk.
Dallas responded after halftime, taking a 61-60 lead following back-to-back 3-pointers from Marshall and Christie to open the third quarter. Improved ball security in the third kept the Mavericks within reach, but late mistakes again proved decisive.
Reflecting on why Dallas continues to find itself in tight finishes, Kidd framed it as part of the team’s ongoing development.
“The group plays hard,” Kidd said. “They find a way to get back in games. We’ve closed some out. We’ve lost some. You learn how to play close games. The group is comfortable in those situations. You win some, you lose some.”
The Mavericks will look to clean up the details Saturday night in Chicago as they close their first road trip of the new year.