Things occasionally got ugly between the Mavericks and Celtics on Saturday night.  Technical fouls were called.  Words were exchanged.  Through it all, there was just a bit too much Harrison Barnes and J.J. Barea for the Celtics to handle.

With the win, the Mavericks improved to 8-2 at home and officially made their way back to .500 at 9-9 after their miserable 2-7 start to the season.  Here are a few of the key takeaways from the game:

Luka Doncic can make you look like a fool
The first quarter might have been the best the Mavericks rookie has looked all season.  He assumed the point guard duties with Dennis Smith Jr. missing the game still dealing with a wrist injury and Doncic did not disappoint.  He found teammates multiple times for wide open three pointers whenever no one had any idea those players were open.  He made some three pointers of his own.  He even had one of the best highlights of the season so far with an epic shot against Kyrie Irving.

Luka Doncic with the fake on Kyrie Irving!

(@BR_NBA) pic.twitter.com/oTFTAOElZs

— Ballislife.com (@Ballislife) November 25, 2018

Love him or hate him, Wesley Matthews is good to have around
After missing the last two games, Matthews returned to the lineup on Saturday and played 33 minutes while scoring 15 points.

Matthews opened the game with a three pointer off a screen.  Despite shooting only 3/9 from deep overall, Matthews contributed heavily on the defensive end while having several very successful defensive stints on Kyrie Irving.  Impressively, Matthews was able to play tenacious defense all night without having a single foul called against him.

This team is totally different when J.J. Barea and Harrison Barnes are at their best.
It never ceases to amaze how great J.J. Barea can be in the role he has on this team.  The 34 year-old started out the season ice cold by shooting 32% from the field in 8 October games and has turned it around to shoot close to 51% from the field in 8 games in November.  Barea tied for the team lead in points by scoring 20 points off the bench on Saturday night.  In his last four games, Barea has averaged over 16 points per game while shooting close to 60% from the field.

Harrison Barnes entered the regular season battling a hamstring issue that made him miss the entire preseason.  Even upon his return, the 26 year-old didn’t immediately hit his stride.  However, things have begun to turn around as of late for Barnes and it happens to coincide with the Mavericks turning it around as a team as well.

Barnes’ 20 points on Saturday night came on 7/12 shooting and 5/7 from deep.  The forward has benefited greatly from young playmakers Luka Doncic and Dennis Smith Jr. being able to find him for spot-up jump shots.  This has helped Barnes find his shooting stroke to get his numbers back to what Mavericks fans saw in his first two seasons in Dallas.  In his last five games, Barnes is averaging 20 points per game with shooting splits of 47%/52%/78%.