SALT LAKE CITY – Monday night was supposed to be a stress-free start to a potential season-swaying, five-game, 11-day trip.
It didn’t work out quite that way. The Mavericks were playing the Utah Jazz, who have let go of the rope for this season. On paper, it was a soft start to a trip that gets a lot more demanding in a hurry on Tuesday in Sacramento.
But the Mavericks were stuck in a tie game early in the fourth quarter before their defense, which improved as the game evolved, showed up big down the stretch as they pulled away for a 115-105 victory over the Jazz at the Delta Center.
With Phoenix losing at San Antonio (without Victor Wembanyama), the Mavericks again moved back into the top seven in the Western Conference, improving their record to 42-29.
Luka Dončić had another monster night with a triple-double – 29 points, 12 rebounds and 13 assists.
Yet the Mavericks were only up 97-96 before a 12-0 blitz gave them enough breathing room to survive Utah’s final push.
“I thought the group after the first quarter, we held them under 25 points (in each of the last three quarters),” coach Jason Kidd said. “That first quarter was kind of a like a shootaround. They were shooting. We were shooting.
“Our physicality started coming in at the second quarter and then after halftime and we talked about, I think they had zero second-chance points in the second half. So being able to get the misses. Utah fought. This is a hard place to win and guys did a great job of executing down the stretch.”
The Mavericks’ defense was particularly stiff against Lauri Markkanen, the Jazz big man who had 33 points through three quarters. He had one in the fourth.
“The physicality, understanding the way the game is being called and how you have to play at this time of year,” Kidd said. “I thought we were really good with our physicality off the ball. And keeping them off the free-throw line was one of the big things.”
While it wasn’t a breeze for the Mavericks, it was successful, which at this point is all that matters.
The Mavericks now have won eight of their past nine while Utah has lost six in a row and nine out of 10.
They now have a glittery 23-4 record against teams with a losing record. As the standings are now, they will not play another sub-.500 team until they return from this marathon trip on April 4 against Atlanta. Only three games remain this season against losing teams.
So taking care of business on Monday was paramount.
And they certainly took their time about it. The Mavericks gave up 41 points in the first quarter before refocusing the rest of the way.
“It was great,” Dončić said of the defense down the stretch. “The first quarter they scored 41. Then only 64 in the (last) three quarters. We should have started the game the way we played the last three quarters.
“We’re in a tough spot right now. We’ve won (eight of nine). We just got to keep getting the wins.”
They had waxed the Jazz 113-97 Thursday in Dallas. Utah had played (and lost by 28) in Houston on Saturday. But for the Mavericks, this was playing the same team in consecutive games, which is never an easy win.
And they’ve often struggled in Utah.
It was no different in the first half, when they trailed 66-61 as the defenses both struggled to stop anybody.
“We got to come out physical at the beginning of games,” said P.J. Washington, who had 16 points. “They scored 41 in the first quarter. We can’t have that. But I feel like we did a great job on the defensive end the rest of the game.”
“We just kept playing, got some stops and converted on the other end. I thought we did a great job in the second half.”
It was the third quarter that jump-started the Mavericks as they ended it tied at 88. Then, Kyrie Irving (27 points) hit a three-pointer that put them ahead 94-89.
The Mavericks’ defense, which had been dormant much of the night, started to kick in and the Jazz had a handful of empty possessions as the Mavericks maintained the lead at 100-96 when Luka hit a baseline fadeaway with 6:35 to go that made it 102-96. Another Jazz miss led to Luka’s layup and an eight-point lead.
From there, they made it work, setting up a pair of games of major importance in Sacramento, starting Tuesday.
“I’m excited,” Washington said. “I can’t wait to go out there and play. And I feel like everybody else is excited. We all know what’s at stake. It’s going to be a real exciting two games.”
Briefly: Josh Green (sprained right ankle) remains out for the Mavericks. But the good news is that he is out of the walking boot. Maxi Kleber was a game-time decision against the Jazz, but after warming up pregame, Kleber got the green light . . . The Jazz have let go of the rope on this season, but their younger players are getting a ton of experience. Said coach Will Hardy: “We’ve been asking a lot of them. And to expect certain results may be a little unfair to them.” However, as the losses have mounted (five in a row before Monday), Hardy has had to reinforce positive messages to the young core Utah is building around. “These games still do matter,” he said. “We may not be in the playoffs as of today, but for every player in our locker room this is a business. And people are always watching because you’re building your own reputation. Even if from just purely a selfish standpoint. You’re representing yourself to our team and every other team.”
X: @ESefko
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