A clutch situation win for the Mavericks? At home?

Yeah, right.

Well, tonight was different for Dallas as ESPN sure got their money’s worth with this playoff atmosphere of a matchup between the Mavericks and Pelicans, as Dallas outlasted the Pels, 127-123 in overtime.

Luka and KP sure played their ‘A’ game on the national stage in this one, both scoring 30 points in the first time in a game together. Luka finished with another triple-double, 30 points, 16 rebounds, and 10 assists, his 22nd of his career and a franchise record, passing Jason Kidd.

Porzingis finished with 34 points, 12 rebounds, and five blocks as he tag teamed with Kleber on defending the rim from Zion.

“Overall, I think we’ve taken a little step forward in terms of finishing out games,” Porzingis said.

Seth Curry continued his hot shooting with 21 points on 6/9 from three, including a clutch corner make in overtime.

As stated above and said by Rick Carlisle after the game, this had a playoff feel to it. ““It was a playoff caliber game from start to finish…great experience for our guys. A guts game for our guys,” Carlisle said of tonight’s victory.

A guts game indeed. The Mavericks overcame their struggles at home, in clutch situations, playing most of the game without Doe-Doe, and made it difficult for Zion all night long.

“I thought Kleber did as good a job as you could do,” Carlisle said of Maxi’s defense on Zion, who ended with 21 points on 9/18 shooting.

Maxi consistently had a body on Zion, making it difficult for Williamson to get to his spots. Kleber was able to withstand the backdown blows from Zion and contested just about every shot of his, who blocked five shots of his own like Porzingis.

With Zion looking human tonight, it was Brandon Ingram and Lonzo Ball who led the way for New Orleans.

Yes, Lonzo Ball, who has been lights out from three as of late and much improved as a shooter overall this year. Ball finished with 25 points, 11 rebounds, and six assists on 7/11 from downtown. Ingram scored 27 before fouling out in overtime.

Luka did get x-rays on his left thumb that’s been ailing him but the results were unclear. When asked how he felt, Luka shrugged and chuckled, “it hurts but I got to play through it.”

The Mavericks will ride this momentum on Friday as another fellow star rookie in Ja Morant and the Grizzlies come to town.