The Dallas Mavericks outlasted the Houston Rockets, 147-136, at American Airlines Center on Sunday afternoon. With the win, the Mavericks captured the 2023-24 season series 3-1.

With their chances at the NBA Play-In tournament getting slimmer by the day, the Rockets (38-40) played like the more desperate team to start the game, winning the first frame by 15 points and leading by as much as 22. The Mavericks (48-30) were able to bounce back in the second quarter to slim the deficit to five points heading into halftime. It was a close contest in the second half, with each team trading leads down the stretch. Houston were up by three with seconds to play, but Luka Doncic found Dante Exum in the closing moments, and the Australian guard hit a clutch three-point shot to force overtime. It was all Dallas in OT, as the Mavericks outscored the Rockets by 11 points to improve to 25-15 at home. The Rockets dropped to 12-26 on the road, and they have been officially knocked out of playoff contention.

Dillon Brooks led Houston with 29 points, two rebounds, two assists and three steals. Fred VanVleet finished with 24 points and 12 assists for his 20th double-double of the season. Jalen Green tallied 21 points, six rebounds, eight assists and two steals. Jock Landale led the Rockets’ bench with 13 points and two assists. Jabari Smith tallied 12 points, nine rebounds, two assists and two blocks.

Kyrie Irving led the Mavericks with a season-high 48 points along with seven rebounds and two assists. Doncic registered his 48th double-double of the season with 37 points, nine rebounds, 12 assists and two blocks. Exum led the bench with 14 points, nine rebounds and two assists. P.J. Washington contributed 14 points, 13 rebounds, two assists and two blocks. Derrick Jones supplied 10 points and two rebounds.

Both teams will play their next respective games on April 9. The Rockets head home to host the Orlando Magic, while the Mavericks travel to Charlotte to take on the Hornets.