Dallas could afford two misses after making 25 at the line

The Dallas Mavericks and Indiana Pacers made the same number of field goals Monday night: 43 apiece. Indiana made one more three, 15 to 14, while Dallas made four more free throws, 25 to 21. That uneven exchange produced the entire difference in a 125-122 Mavericks victory at American Airlines Center.

Dallas attempted 34 free throws and Indiana 28. Neither team shot them especially well as a group. The Mavericks made enough to build a lead in the middle of a close fourth quarter, which gave them some room for error when two of the most important attempts missed.

Cooper Flagg was perfect at the stripe, going 8-for-8 on the way to 43 points, 10 rebounds and six assists. Kyrie Irving added 35 points and went 6-for-7 on free throws while making a season-best seven threes. Their shot-making carried Dallas through a night when Indiana had the cleaner outside shooting profile and the better early grip on the game.

The Pacers led 66-56 at halftime and remained ahead 93-90 entering the fourth quarter. Pascal Siakam had already scored 26 points by the break, making 8 of 9 shots from the field, 5 of 6 threes and 5 of 6 free throws. He finished with 29 points, nine rebounds and eight assists without a turnover.

Indiana also received 47 bench points, compared with 26 for Dallas, so this was not a game the Mavericks controlled from the opening tip.

The fourth quarter changed when Dallas began converting the possessions that gave it a chance to take the lead. Irving’s three at 9:36 put the Mavericks ahead 98-97. Flagg then made both free throws at 9:14, making it 100-97, and Irving followed by making all three at 8:30. Dallas led 103-99.

That five-point burst at the line did not arrive as a single dramatic swing. Indiana scored between the possessions, and the Mavericks still had to play the final 8:30. Daniel Gafford’s basket and free throw at 7:36 pushed Dallas to 106-99, adding a little cushion after Flagg and Irving had done the harder work.

The sequence showed why free throws are best judged by what they change on the scoreboard, not by treating every foul as an equal event.

The Pacers spent the last two minutes making Dallas pay for failing to build a safer margin. Naji Marshall’s floater made it 118-113 with 1:24 remaining. Aaron Nesmith answered with three free throws at 1:14, then hit threes at 52.1 and 20.6 seconds.

The second of those made it 123-122, after Marshall had made one free throw at 38.6 and Flagg had answered with a jumper at 26.3 to make it 123-119.

Irving’s earlier conversion had a late echo. With 18.0 seconds left, he made both free throws to put Dallas ahead 125-122, forcing Indiana to chase a three instead of a two. Nesmith missed that tying attempt at 6.5 seconds, and the Mavericks appeared to have escaped cleanly.

Then Washington missed both free throws at 4.0 seconds. Toppin collected the defensive rebound, Indiana called timeout with 3.7 seconds remaining, and Caleb Martin was credited with a steal at 0.9 after deflecting Andrew Nembhard’s pass.

Dallas also won the rebounding battle 43-27, including a 10-1 edge on the offensive glass, which helped create extra possessions. But the Mavericks committed 15 turnovers to Indiana’s 13, and the Pacers finished with 35 assists on their 43 field goals. This was a narrow escape built from several kinds of work, not a flawless closing act.

Washington’s misses gave Indiana another possession. By then the Mavericks had put 25 points on the board from the same spot, including the two Irving made with 18 seconds left. There was a bit of insurance after all. It had come from an earlier trip.

Sources

ESPN: final game record and play-by-play

Associated Press via ESPN: game reporting

Mavericks: regional broadcast footprint