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The Mavericks hand the Rockets their first loss as Kyrie and Flagg score 68 cover
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The Mavericks hand the Rockets their first loss as Kyrie and Flagg score 68

Kyrie Irving scored 35 and Cooper Flagg had 33 as Dallas rallied from eight down after three quarters to beat Houston 116-111. The Rockets are 5-1, and their 29 3-point attempts produced only seven makes.

By RANT Sports Desk / 4 sources / Published October 30, 2026

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  • The Houston Rockets are not unbeaten anymore. The Dallas Mavericks rallied from an eight-point deficit entering the fourth quarter and won 116-111 on Friday night at American Airlines Center, dropping Houston to 5-1 in both teams' NBA Cup group-play opener.

    Kyrie Irving scored 35 points on 12-of-19 shooting with nine assists and five 3-pointers. Cooper Flagg scored 33 on 13-of-19 shooting with nine rebounds and six assists, according to the ESPN box score. Dallas scored 40 points in the fourth quarter.

  • Houston led 84-76 after three. Then Irving took over. By the time he hit a 3 with Dallas in front in the fourth, the NBA's account counted 20 of his points in the second half. Flagg followed with an and-1 that pushed the lead to five late, and he scored again inside the final 10 seconds to keep Dallas up three.

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  • Houston had one more chance. Amen Thompson made one of two free throws with 3.6 seconds left, then a lane violation and a foul away from the play by Marcus Smart sent Flagg to the line for one more. Irving made two more with 3.1 left, and Jabari Smith Jr.'s heave missed.

    The Rockets shot 7 of 29 from 3, and that decided it. Fred VanVleet went 3 of 10 from deep and 6 of 17 overall. Kevin Durant scored 28 but made one of six 3-point tries. Houston won the glass 48-41 and grabbed 20 offensive rebounds, and it still lost because it could not match Dallas shot for shot.

    Smith scored 22, Thompson had 15 with four steals, and Tari Eason pulled down 13 rebounds. Houston's 12 steals kept it in the game. Dallas turned it over 18 times and survived because it shot 52% from the field.

  • Daniel Gafford was quietly huge for the Mavericks, going 6 of 7 for 18 points with seven rebounds. Dallas improved to 4-2.

  • What's next: The Rockets' perfect start lasted five games, and the 3-point shooting is the thing to watch before anyone gets too worried. Dallas has a real two-man game in Irving and Flagg, and 68 points from the pair is a number the rest of the West will notice.

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