Dallas builds early control, but Darius Garland and Kawhi Leonard take over the finish as the Clippers outlast the Mavs 138-131 in overtime.
| Team | Q1 | Q2 | Q3 | Q4 | OT1 | Final |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| LAC | 32 | 31 | 37 | 22 | 16 | 138 |
| DAL | 42 | 30 | 27 | 23 | 9 | 131 |
The Mavericks had this one in their hands early, and then they didn’t. Dallas opens with a 42-point first quarter, punches the lead out to 12, and keeps pressure on the Clippers for most of the night — but Los Angeles keeps answering, keeps hanging around, and ultimately wins the kind of game that turns on poise more than fireworks. In overtime, Darius Garland and Kawhi Leonard are the entire story. Garland pours in 41 points with 11 assists, Leonard finishes with 34, and the Clippers survive a 138-131 shootout in a game that featured 19 lead changes and a late stretch that felt like a possession-by-possession heavyweight fight.
Dallas starts fast behind Max Christie and the pace never really slows. The home side strings together an 11-0 type burst in the first quarter, capped by Christie’s 26-foot step-back three after a C. Flagg assist, and suddenly the Mavs are flowing in transition and in rhythm. They carry that edge into the second, where Christie’s finger-roll layup helps fuel another 11-point run to push the margin to 54-42. The Clippers are chasing from behind, but they never let the game get completely away. A second-quarter 8-0 burst gets them back within two possessions, and Ivica Zubac? No — this was about second chances and pressure at the rim, with an I. Jackson putback dunk shrinking the gap and reminding Dallas that the paint wasn’t safe.
By halftime, Dallas is still in front 72-63, and it feels like the Mavericks have control without ever truly breaking the game open. But the third quarter changes the tone. The Clippers tighten up, the ball starts moving through Garland and Leonard, and the lead begins to tilt. Los Angeles wins the period 37-27, and the scoreboard says it all: Dallas 99, LAC 100 heading to the fourth. That is the turning point in pure math, but the emotional shift is even bigger. The Clippers stop playing catch-up and start dictating the pace. Garland’s pull-up game gets cleaner, Leonard starts finding seams in the defense, and Dallas no longer gets the comfortable first actions it had early.
The fourth quarter turns into a shot-making duel. Naji Marshall is huge for Dallas, finishing with 28 points and repeatedly keeping the Mavericks alive with downhill drives and tough pull-ups. One of his biggest moments comes with 19.1 seconds left in overtime, when he nails a 25-foot running pull-up three off a C. Flagg assist to cut it to 131-138. But by then the Clippers have already landed the decisive blows. The final five minutes are loaded with clutch possessions: R. Nembhard gets a driving layup to make it 124-122, then Garland answers with a 25-foot pull-up three to make it 128-124. Leonard follows with a driving finger-roll layup, then later buries a 30-foot pull-up and a short floating bank shot to stretch the margin to 138-128. That sequence is the game — Dallas keeps taking punches, but every time the Mavs threaten, Los Angeles has the next bucket.
Garland’s line is the headline, but the full picture is even better for the Clippers. He shoots 62 percent, hits eight threes, and hands out 11 assists, controlling the game like a lead guard who knows exactly when to score and when to set the table. Leonard is the closer, scoring 34 with the kind of shot-making that ends arguments. Naji Marshall’s 28 and Cooper Flagg’s 18 points, 10 rebounds, eight assists, and four blocks give Dallas plenty to build on, but the Mavs will look back at the late-game execution — and the fact that Los Angeles outscored them in the extra period — as the difference. For the Clippers, this is the kind of road win that can matter down the stretch: a high-possession, high-pressure victory that strengthens their position and shows they can win a playoff-style game when everything is tight.
Turning Point
The game flips in the third quarter when the Clippers erase Dallas’ cushion and take a 100-99 lead into the fourth, setting up Garland and Leonard to finish the comeback in overtime.
Key Performers
He controls the game late, burying a huge pull-up three in overtime and finishing with eight made threes and 11 assists.
He delivers the closing punches, mixing pull-ups, a driving layup, and a bank shot to break Dallas in OT.
He keeps Dallas alive in the fourth and overtime with relentless rim pressure and tough shot-making.
He nearly produces a triple-double and keeps creating looks, including the late assist on Marshall’s final three.
He gives Dallas a steady scoring punch and helps sustain the early lead.
His 13 boards help Dallas control the glass, even if the Mavs can’t close it out.
Box Score Leaders
| Player | PTS | REB | AST | 3PM | Notable |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Darius Garland | 41 | 3 | 11 | 8 | 41 PTS11 AST8 3PM62% FG |
| Kawhi Leonard | 34 | 3 | 5 | 5 | 34 PTS5 3PM |
| Naji Marshall | 28 | 2 |
How Our Predictions Held Up
Our model landed at 42-for-83 overall, a 50.6% hit rate, so this was a mixed night rather than a clean edge. The strong calls on Max Christie’s under props hit, but the biggest misses came with Cooper Flagg’s assists and Naji Marshall’s scoring, both of which far outpaced expectations as Dallas leaned on them heavily in a high-scoring game.