On Monday, the Dallas Mavericks faced the Atlanta Hawks in the second game of a back-to-back after a tough overtime loss to the Miami Heat. With key players Luka Doncic, Klay Thompson, Quentin Grimes, and Dante Exum sidelined, Dallas started Kyrie Irving, Jaden Hardy, Naji Marshall, and Dereck Lively II, while Atlanta went with Trae Young, Dyson Daniels, Zaccharie Risacher, Jalen Johnson, and Clint Capela.

Dallas struggled early, taking over two minutes to score, which allowed Atlanta to take a 12-4 lead, fueled by five points each from Daniels and Johnson. The Mavericks had a slow start, committing eight turnovers in the first quarter, including three from Hardy. Atlanta extended their lead to 11 points late in the period, but Dallas closed strong, finishing with a 10-0 run to cut the Hawks’ lead to 31-28 by the end of the first.

The Mavs continued their push in the second quarter, eventually taking a 39-38 lead on two free throws from Spencer Dinwiddie. Despite building a six-point lead, Dallas couldn’t maintain it, and Atlanta closed the half with a 12-0 run to lead 67-61 at the break.

The Hawks began the second half strong, pushing their lead to 11 points with five quick points from Risacher. However, Dallas battled back, with Dinwiddie stepping up to score 17 points, including three consecutive three-pointers, giving the Mavs an 88-86 lead by the end of the third.

In the fourth, the lead seesawed back and forth until Kyrie Irving took over, hitting a step-back three and two more triples to push the lead to 115-107. Irving’s shooting sparked the team, with P.J. Washington also contributing to extend the lead to 121-111. Despite a late push from Atlanta, including a few quick buckets to trim the deficit to six, the Mavericks held on. Hardy’s tough layup, a key block from Washington, and Irving’s late layup sealed the 129-119 victory.

Irving finished with 32 points, 16 of which came in the final quarter. Dinwiddie had a season-high 22 points, Hardy scored a season-high 23, and Marshall added 22, marking his third consecutive 20-point game. Dallas shot 16-35 from three, including 6-9 in the fourth, while Atlanta struggled with 9-21 from deep.

Jalen Johnson led the Hawks with 28 points and 11 rebounds, Trae Young had 18 points and 16 assists, and Dyson Daniels scored 17 points. Dallas will return home to face the New York Knicks on Wednesday, hoping to have their sidelined players back.