Max Strus Hits 59-Foot Shot to Clinch Cavs Victory Over Mavs at Buzzer

Max Strus made a full-court buzzer-beater to lift the Cavs past the Mavs despite Dallas leading by as many as 10 points in the fourth quarter.

CLEVELAND — The Dallas Mavericks (33-25) sought to bounce back from a blowout loss against the Indiana Pacers by taking on a tough Cleveland Cavaliers (38-19) team. It was a tightly contested matchup, ending with Max Strus throwing up a 59-foot game-winning shot at the buzzer — the second-longest in NBA history. The Mavs lost 121-119, marking a second consecutive loss. 

"We should've closed that game out in a better way," Mavs forward P.J. Washington said. "We felt like we should have won that game. To lose like that, it definitely hurts."

Luka Doncic produced another dynamic performance, finishing with 45 points, 14 assists, and nine rebounds. After a slow start, Kyrie Irving added 30 points, six rebounds, and three assists. Washington was the only other player for Dallas to score in double figures with 11 points. 

David Richard-USA TODAY Sports

Donovan Mitchell led the Cavs with 31 points, seven rebounds, and six assists. Along with a game-winning shot, Strus had 21 points, four rebounds, and four assists. There were plenty of strong performances for Cleveland, including Jarrett Allen's 19 points and nine rebounds. Evan Mobley added 12 points, nine rebounds, and seven assists. 

Doncic guided the Mavs to a narrow early lead, finishing with 11 points and five assists in the opening period alone — setting up a 24-23 advantage. Neither team shot well from the perimeter, with both teams packing the paint often. The state of affairs was not sustained once Doncic went to the sideline. 

Without Doncic on the floor, the Cavs took momentum in the second quarter, outscoring the Mavs 18-7 to start. On the first play after Donovan Mitchell returned to the floor, he converted on a pull-up 3-pointer to push Cleveland up 41-31 midway through the period. 

Mitchell's perimeter shooting continued to provide the Cavs with a boost, with his third make pushing his team to a game-high 15-point lead with 3:10 left before halftime. The sequence was created by a chase-down block by Strus on Doncic after a spin move, allowing Mitchell to receive the ball on the trail. 

Doncic heated up from beyond the arc, converting on four consecutive possessions to bring the Mavs back within four points right before halftime. Dallas trailed 60-56 despite receiving 27 points and six assists from the Slovenian superstar. 

"He can score on anybody in the league; as you can see, Allen, it doesn't matter, puts you in an iso position to dance," Kidd said of Doncic. "And if you're going to dance with him, he's going to, he's going to get the better hand of it. I thought he did a great job of scoring but also found his teammates when he needed to, and I thought he played a great game and put us in a position to win."

Irving struggled to convert on his shot attempts in the first half, so the Mavs relied heavily on Doncic hunting switches and playing in isolation. It didn't take long for the 2016 NBA champion to heat up after halftime, converting on a pair of tough short-range jumpers with creative approaches. 

After Doncic found Dereck Lively II for a no-look pass, he finished in the paint to tie it up 60-60. It was the beginning of both teams trading mini-runs throughout the third quarter. An isolation 3-pointer from Irving resulted in him joining Doncic as breaking the 20-point scoring mark while giving Dallas a brief one-point lead. 

Donovan Mitchell Says Cavs Should 'For Sure' Retire Kyrie Irving's Jersey

Doncic had another impressive scoring run, attacking the paint and powering through smaller defenders, reaching 35 points with a little over three minutes left to play in the third quarter. He then connected with Derrick Jones Jr. on a lob after breaking down a defender in isolation, putting Dallas up 81-79. 

The fourth quarter began with the Cavs scoring the initial two made baskets using Mobley's finishes at the rim, pushing their advantage to 87-82. Dallas responded with Doncic continuing to score inside the 3-point line, later followed by Doncic and Irving hitting 3-pointers on consecutive possessions. 

The Mavs began to create some separation after Doncic connected with P.J. Washington on a pick-and-roll, resulting in an and-one finish through Mobley. Washington missed the free throw on the possible and-one. However, Tim Hardaway Jr. made a catch-and-shoot jumper on the offensive rebound. Doncic hit another step-back 3-pointer to extend the advantage to 105-98 midway through the fourth quarter. 

Dallas achieved a double-figure lead after an offensive rebound led to Maxi Kleber converting a catch-and-shoot 3-pointer. The Mavs were up 108-98 at that point., but it did not last. Strus converted from the perimeter on four consecutive possessions to rally Cleveland back within one point with 2:35 left to play. 

“What he did tonight was absolutely ridiculous to come back in that fourth quarter for us to be down the way we were,” Cavs coach J.B. Bickerstaff said of Strus. "But that’s who Max is. And it’s as simple sometimes as chasing down a loose ball or making an extra rotation. Max never quits and we were down and he had the same mentality. He wasn’t going to quit and he just kept making play after play after play on both ends.”

Doncic missed a step-back 3-pointer, followed by Mitchell hitting a go-ahead shot from deep. Cleveland jumped ahead 115-113 with 1:51 remaining in regulation. A steal sparked a fastbreak for Green to dunk on a give-and-go exchange with Doncic to tie it up, but Mitchell hit another 3-pointer to stifle Dallas. 

The Mavs had the ball with 29.8 seconds left, facing a three-point deficit. Irving attacked downhill for a floater to make it a one-point game. 

Cleveland inbounded the ball with 23.8 seconds on the game clock, with Dallas frequently trying to trap. The Mavs jumped on the ball, thinking they had forced a jump ball, but after a video review, the Cavs retained possession. With Dallas crowding before the catch, an inbounds pass ricocheted off Darius Garland before going out. 

“That two-minute span was intense for us," Irving said. "This is the first time I’ve lost on a half-court shot. You don’t flush it out of your system, you feel it. This one has got to sting a little bit.”

The Mavs had the ball with 8.3 seconds left and had the pass tipped by Mobley before Doncic ultimately attacked the rim to find Washington on a dropoff pass for a dunk. Dallas was up 119-118 with 2.1 seconds left before Strus heaved a full-court shot to beat the buzzer, clinching the victory.  

“The last five felt pretty good,” Strus said. “I felt a rhythm, and it’s fun when you do that. Every time I shot it, I felt like it was going in, and it was. Same with the last one.”

Doncic called Strus' shot "incredible" but admitted that as the closest defender to the ball, he needed to be tighter on him to contest. 

“Incredible shot. That was just an incredible shot,” Doncic said. "It was my fault. I should have pressed forward (on Strus). I thought we played a good game, but that was rough, obviously.”

The Mavs will complete the second night of a back-to-back on Wednesday when they take on the Toronto Raptors. In less than 24 hours, Dallas will be competing to avoid undergoing a three-game losing streak after previously achieving a seven-game winning streak before Sunday's loss against the Indiana Pacers.

"Just take time to reevaluate just how we played all four quarters, and we looked at our segment towards the end of the game, and we were really happy with that," Irving said. "We executed. We gave ourselves a chance to win down the stretch. 

"I mean, it's tough. I think we played a good game," Doncic said. "Just, that was rough, obviously, but we got our next one tomorrow. It's a beauty of NBA basketball. We got our next one tomorrow, so we gotta bounce back." 

Irving reminisced about playing in Cleveland again, where he spent the first six seasons of his NBA career. He received a welcome-back video and signage from the Cavs while also being met with a warm reception from the home crowd. 

"Oh man, it's beautiful. Shout out to all the Cavs fans, and I don't want to just say Cavs fans, but all of Ohio," Irving said. "You know, 2016 is forever. I don't think anyone's touching that historical moment, but if someone does, God bless them."

"Every time I come into this building, I look up at that banner, and it just brings me back to all those emotions," Irving continued. "And I'm just grateful for my time here, and I really want to get that across to the Cavs fans, Cavs organization."

On the subject of a possible future jersey retirement by the Cavs, Irving made clear that it would be "very meaningful." He acknowledged he's aware of the conversation surrounding the subject, sharing his appreciation for Donovan Mitchell, who was asked for his thoughts on the matter. 

"It would be very meaningful," Irving said. "I haven't given it much thought. I'm not oblivious to the questions you guys have for Donovan. ... I don't want him to be answering those questions because he's new here, and he's just trying to establish his legacy, and I give him a lot of credit."

The game meant something to Doncic, too, who represented his country in front of a large segment of fans from his home country on Slovenian Heritage Night. He appreciated hearing Slovenian music and interacting with the fans. 

"Oh, it's crazy. There was Slovenian music here. I always represent Slovenia," Doncic said. "I always put up first; even in Dallas, you have Slovenians, so I always put Slovenia first. I'm happy to represent this country. It was amazing to see."

Doncic has his 25th birthday on Wednesday when the Mavs take on the Raptors. He joked that he's getting old and will need to get more treatment but emphasized that he's having fun playing basketball. 

"No, I'm getting old. Tomorrow, I'll need extra treatment for me. I'm having fun playing basketball," Doncic said. "Obviously, this one's tough to swallow, but we got our next game tomorrow. I'm just enjoying playing basketball."