SALT LAKE CITY – On the verge of yet another impressive win in a hostile environment, the Mavericks ran into a road block in the final minutes Saturday afternoon against Utah.

A great big 7-foot-1 road block. Or maybe it was a block on the road.

With the game hanging in the balance, long and lanky Utah center Rudy Gobert recovered after Delon Wright got a step in front of him. Gobert stayed with the play, chased Wright down the lane and swatted away a would-be tying layup just inches before it would have kissed the backboard and cradled into the basket.

That, along with a clutch put-back basket moments earlier by Gobert, were the plays that left the Mavericks feeling like they let one get away. But really, the Jazz took it in crunch time with an assortment of plays that allowed them to outscore the Mavericks 14-5 down the stretch and take a 112-107 victory.

It was a bitter defeat in a game the Mavericks led most of the way, but the final minutes were costly. Gobert, with some help from Donovan Mitchell, controlled both ends of the court, particularly on defense.

“Yeah, I thought I had, like, three open layups,” Luka Doncic said. “I didn’t see him coming. Very, very long and a very good defensive player.”

The Mavericks are a young team and these are the sort of growing pains they will have to go through. Learning how to win tight games on the road is one of the NBA’s toughest challenges.

They were ahead 102-98 with three minutes to play after Kristaps Porzingis made a mid-range bank shot.

They still were tied at 104 until Gobert tipped in Mitchell’s missed layup with 1:02 left. Tim Hardaway Jr. made a clutch 3-pointer, but Utah’s Royce O’Neale countered with a triple.

Then, with 24 seconds left, Wright – having a strong night all around – faked Gobert, appeared to get past him, then had his layup denied at the last possible second. The Mavericks then had to foul and Mitchell and Gobert made three of four free throws in the waning seconds to clinch it.

“Gobert is probably going to be defensive player of the year again,” coach Rick Carlisle said. “He impacts the game massively. And he doesn’t just do it around the basket. He does it on the perimeter, too, on switches.

“The play he made on Wright’s drive at the end was an amazing play. He’s a great, great defensive player.”

The Jazz had taken some heat lately for their 18-2 run because they had only two wins over teams that were above .500 in that stretch.

That changed against the Mavericks, although they played a passionate game, as is their custom on the road, where their record fell to 15-6. With smallish lineups being the norm for them, the Mavericks were outrebounded 54-44 and the Jazz had a head-shaking 28 second chance points on just 12 offensive rebounds.

The Mavericks had just 12 second-chance points on 10 offensive boards. Despite the rebounding woes, Carlisle was generally happy with the way his team kept their all-for-one attitude.

“All in all I really loved our effort,” he said. “I loved the fact that in difficult circumstances with the noise and everything else guys stuck together the entire game. They never fragmented at all. We just had a real tough go in the last four minutes.”

The Mavericks got 25 points from Doncic, although he needed 25 shots from the field to get them. They got 19 points from Seth Curry and 15 from Porzingis.

But at the end, it was the Jazz who made the plays. Gobert, who had a sluggish start, finished with 22 points and 17 rebounds. Mitchell had 14 of his 25 points in the last 14 minutes of the game.

Like Doncic, Mitchell also needed 25 shots to get his 25 points.

“We’re still learning how to play under pressure,” Porzingis said. “You can always learn and get better. Every possession matters. And things just happen. We will learn and be a better team.”

Wright, who admitted that Gobert’s late block was a great and legal swat, had 11 points, eight rebounds and four assists as he continues to produce off the bench.

There is no shame in losing to Utah at home. They are 18-3 there. That doesn’t make this loss sting any less.

“I think we’ve done a pretty good job on the road,” Wright said. There’s a couple games we’d like to have back, including this one. It’s a learning process. But we’ll keep going.”

Honoring an old friend: Carlisle said he talked before Saturday’s game to longtime Jazz assistant coach Phil Johnson, who was Jerry Sloan’s right-hand man for years.

Sloan has had failing health in recent years and Carlisle wanted to send out his best wishes to the hall of fame coach.

“He’s a man’s man, a coach’s coach,” Carlisle said. “I got to know him very well over the years. He’s a giver.”

Carlisle attended one of the Jazz’s training camp for a few days when John Stockton and Karl Malone were in their prime.

“It was very educational,” Carlisle said. “And that was at a time when I had not been a head coach yet.

“There’s nobody in this business that doesn’t have him in their thoughts and prayers.”

Twitter: @ESefko

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