By james art Kyrie Irving scored 35 points as the Dallas Mavericks rallied from Anthony Edwards’ early onslaught to post a 120-114 road victory over the Minnesota Timberwolves on Tuesday.
Edwards looked poised to help Minnesota avenge last season’s loss to Dallas in the Western Conference finals after erupting for 24 points in a devastating first quarter performance.
He hit six 3-pointers and went six of 10 from the field to help Minnesota take a 34-26 lead into the second quarter.
But Dallas fought back, outscoring Minnesota 35-25 in the second quarter to take a 61-59 halftime lead.
Irving then took control in the third quarter with 16 points as Dallas built a decisive 93-82 advantage early in the fourth quarter.
Although Minnesota rallied to within two points with just over three minutes remaining, Dallas regrouped and a monster 3-pointer from Luka Doncic and nine fourth-quarter points from Irving sealed the win.
“We’re just very resilient and we figured out what the game plan was,” a relieved Irving said after the win. “They were making a lot of threes.
“We know this team very well. They know us very well – so we knew it would be personal. The emotions were high, we’re just so grateful to come here and get the win.”
Irving led Dallas in scoring and Doncic added 24 points. PJ Washington chipped in with 17 points and Daniel Gafford added 14.
Meanwhile, Minnesota star Edwards led the hosts with a game-high 37 points, while new signing Julius Randle finished with 20.
Irving was pleased with the performance, which saw Dallas improve to 3-1 on the season as they look to establish themselves as true contenders in the West.
“We’re just getting acclimated, getting into a great rhythm, getting into great shape,” Irving said of Dallas’ promising early season form. “We just want to value possessions right now, just develop that chemistry.”
Elsewhere in the NBA on Tuesday, the Denver Nuggets were taken to overtime for the second straight night before rallying for a 144-139 road victory over the Brooklyn Nets thanks to Nikola Jokic’s 150th career triple-double.
Denver was forced to dig deep to beat Toronto in overtime on Monday and were again forced to the well by the Nets, who jumped out to a 17-point lead in the second quarter before slowly chipping away.
Jokic forced overtime with just nine seconds left, hooking a 125-125 tie.
Denver then dominated overtime, outscoring Brooklyn 19-14 for a win that helped the Nuggets improve to 2-2.
Jokic finished with 29 points, 18 rebounds and 16 assists, while Jamal Murray and Aaron Gordon each added 24 points. Meanwhile, Russell Westbrook contributed 22 points off the bench.
German international Dennis Schroeder was the top scorer for Brooklyn with 28 points.
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