James Harden had 23 points (10 in the third quarter) and 12 assists, and the Brooklyn Nets rallied from 17 points down in the third quarter to beat the Dallas Mavericks 102-99.
The Nets trailed 62-50 at halftime and 71-54 with 7:30 left in the third quarter. They outscored the Mavericks 48-28 the rest of the way.
Nic Claxton missed 2 free throws with the Nets up 3 and 20.7 seconds left, and Luka Dončić missed a step-back 3-pointer with 15.7 seconds left. The Mavericks had the ball down 3 after a timeout, but Tim Hardaway Jr. missed a pull-up 3-pointer at the buzzer that would have tied it.
During clutch time, the Nets outscored the Mavericks 9-4. Kevin Durant (No. 6 in clutch points, 2021-22) scored 4 of the Nets’ 9 on 2 for 2 shooting.
Durant scored 24 points.
For the Mavericks, Dončić had 28 points and 9 assists, and Hardaway went 0 for 7 from 3.
The Nets shot 50.6% from the field and 30.8% from 3 to the Mavericks’ 40.0% and 19.6%. The Mavericks outscored the Nets 14-2 off turnovers. They did not make a field goal in the last 3:51. The Nets outscored the Mavericks 27-13 in 12 minutes with Durant, Harden, Johnson, Mills and Claxton on the floor together.