PHOENIX -- — Kyrie Irving scored 20 points, Daniel Gafford added 16 and the Dallas Mavericks won their first game since star Luka Doncic was injured, beating the Phoenix Suns 98-89 on Friday night.

Kevin Durant scored 35 points for the Suns, who have lost four of their past five games.

Doncic is expected to miss about a month with a calf injury suffered in the team’s Christmas Day loss to Minnesota. The Mavs were left further short-handed on Friday in the third quarter after forwards Naji Marshall and P.J. Washington — along with Phoenix's Jusuf Nurkic — were ejected after a brief fight.

The Mavs persevered anyway thanks to a balanced effort on both ends of the floor. Dallas never trailed and led by as many as 18. Spencer Dinwiddie and Maxi Kleber each scored 15 points and Klay Thompson added 11.

Dallas took a 55-39 lead by halftime, led by Irving's 15 points. The Suns shot just 33.3% over the first two quarters.

Takeaways

Mavericks: It was a gritty win for the Mavs, who controlled the game from the outset despite playing without Doncic. Irving made just 6 of 21 shots overall, but 5 of 10 from behind the arc.

Suns: Two days after a galvanizing win on Christmas Day over the Nuggets, the Suns went right back to mediocrity. Part of the problem is the absence of injured All-Star Devin Booker, but as the Mavericks showed on Friday, teams can still have a level of success without one of their stars.

Key moment

The Suns briefly cut the Mavs advantage to 81-75 midway through the fourth, but Dallas' Quentin Grimes responded with a tough 3-pointer to push the lead back to nine.

Key stat

The Suns have a 7-14 record since starting the season at 8-1.

Up next

Mavericks at Trail Blazers on Saturday; Suns at Warriors on Saturday.

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AP NBA: https://apnews.com/hub/NBA

Play By Play

Recent plays and game events

TIME	PLAY
12:00	Daniel Gafford vs. Jusuf Nurkic (Kyrie Irving gains possession)	0	0
11:42	Daniel Gafford misses 6-foot two point shot	0	0
11:40	Jusuf Nurkic defensive rebound	0	0
11:28	Bradley Beal misses 26-foot three point pullup jump shot	0	0
11:25	Klay Thompson defensive rebound	0	0
11:18	Daniel Gafford makes 4-foot dunk (Klay Thompson assists)	0	2
11:00	Ryan Dunn makes 8-foot two point shot (Jusuf Nurkic assists)	2	2
10:45	Kyrie Irving makes 25-foot three pointer	2	5
10:30	P.J. Washington personal foul	2	5
10:19	Jusuf Nurkic misses 1-foot two point shot	2	5
10:18	Klay Thompson defensive rebound	2	5
10:10	P.J. Washington makes 22-foot three point shot (Kyrie Irving assists)	2	8
9:52	Jusuf Nurkic misses driving floating jump shot	2	8
9:50	Naji Marshall defensive rebound	2	8
9:39	Kyrie Irving makes 27-foot three point step back jumpshot (Naji Marshall assists)	2	11
9:24	Tyus Jones back court turnover	2	11
9:17	P.J. Washington out of bounds lost ball turnover	2	11
9:00	Kevin Durant makes 11-foot pullup jump shot	4	11
8:52	P.J. Washington misses 25-foot three point pullup jump shot	4	11
8:50	Daniel Gafford offensive rebound	4	11
8:46	Kyrie Irving makes 26-foot three point jumper (Daniel Gafford assists)	4	14
8:45	Suns Full timeout	4	14
8:22	Bradley Beal makes 17-foot pullup jump shot (Jusuf Nurkic assists)	6	14
8:10	Naji Marshall bad pass (Jusuf Nurkic steals)	6	14
8:06	Tyus Jones misses 27-foot three point shot	6	14
8:04	Tyus Jones offensive rebound	6	14
8:00	Bradley Beal makes 23-foot three pointer (Tyus Jones assists)	9	14
7:44	P.J. Washington bad pass (Ryan Dunn steals)	9	14
7:29	Daniel Gafford blocks Ryan Dunn's driving dunk	9	14
7:27	Ryan Dunn offensive rebound	9	14
7:24	Kevin Durant makes 30-foot three point jumper (Tyus Jones assists)	12	14
6:57	Kyrie Irving makes 23-foot three point jumper (Klay Thompson assists)	12	17
6:40	Kyrie Irving personal foul	12	17
6:40	Quentin Grimes enters the game for Klay Thompson	12	17
6:40	Maxi Kleber enters the game for P.J. Washington	12	17
6:35	Ryan Dunn misses 25-foot three point jumper	12	17
6:32	Jusuf Nurkic offensive rebound	12	17
6:25	Ryan Dunn misses 25-foot three point jumper	12	17
6:24	Maxi Kleber defensive rebound	12	17
6:17	Kyrie Irving misses 26-foot three point pullup jump shot	12	17
6:15	Ryan Dunn defensive rebound	12	17
5:57	Tyus Jones makes 25-foot three point jumper (Ryan Dunn assists)	15	17
5:34	Maxi Kleber makes 24-foot three point jumper (Kyrie Irving assists)	15	20
5:14	Royce O'Neale enters the game for Ryan Dunn	15	20
5:14	Mason Plumlee enters the game for Jusuf Nurkic	15	20
5:14	Dwight Powell enters the game for Daniel Gafford	15	20
5:07	Kevin Durant makes 13-foot pullup jump shot	17	20
4:57	Kyrie Irving misses 26-foot three point step back jumpshot	17	20
4:53	Dwight Powell offensive rebound	17	20
4:51	Quentin Grimes makes layup (Dwight Powell assists)	17	22
4:29	Bradley Beal misses 19-foot pullup jump shot	17	22
4:27	Naji Marshall defensive rebound	17	22
4:17	Quentin Grimes misses 25-foot three point jumper	17	22
4:12	Royce O'Neale defensive rebound	17	22
4:02	Tyus Jones misses 23-foot three point jumper	17	22
4:00	Naji Marshall defensive rebound	17	22
3:48	Naji Marshall misses driving layup	17	22
3:46	Royce O'Neale defensive rebound	17	22
3:42	Bradley Beal misses two point shot	17	22
3:40	Quentin Grimes defensive rebound	17	22
3:34	Bradley Beal blocks Quentin Grimes 's 14-foot pullup jump shot	17	22
3:33	Mavericks offensive team rebound	17	22
3:33	Josh Okogie enters the game for Bradley Beal	17	22
3:33	Monte Morris enters the game for Tyus Jones	17	22
3:33	Spencer Dinwiddie enters the game for Naji Marshall	17	22
3:22	Spencer Dinwiddie makes 7-foot two point shot	17	24
3:12	Josh Okogie makes 22-foot three point jumper (Royce O'Neale assists)	20	24
2:55	Royce O'Neale personal foul	20	24
2:55	Mavericks Full timeout	20	24
2:55	Klay Thompson enters the game for Kyrie Irving	20	24
2:55	P.J. Washington enters the game for Maxi Kleber	20	24
2:47	Mason Plumlee shooting foul	20	24
2:47	Spencer Dinwiddie makes free throw 1 of 2	20	25
2:47	Spencer Dinwiddie makes free throw 2 of 2	20	26
2:35	Royce O'Neale misses 24-foot three point jumper	20	26
2:31	Suns offensive team rebound	20	26
2:24	Dwight Powell blocks Josh Okogie 's 6-foot driving layup	20	26
2:24	Dwight Powell defensive rebound	20	26
2:14	Spencer Dinwiddie makes 18-foot pullup jump shot	20	28
2:00	Dwight Powell personal foul	20	28
1:48	Monte Morris misses two point shot	20	28
1:47	Dwight Powell defensive rebound	20	28
1:40	Spencer Dinwiddie misses 28-foot three point jumper	20	28
1:36	Monte Morris defensive rebound	20	28
1:26	Kevin Durant makes 12-foot two point shot (Monte Morris assists)	22	28
1:14	Klay Thompson misses 27-foot three point pullup jump shot	22	28
1:12	Josh Okogie defensive rebound	22	28
52.0	Josh Okogie makes 25-foot three pointer (Royce O'Neale assists)	25	28
34.1	Spencer Dinwiddie misses 26-foot three point step back jumpshot	25	28
31.0	Monte Morris defensive rebound	25	28
25.1	Royce O'Neale steps out of bounds turnover	25	28
25.1	Kyrie Irving enters the game for Dwight Powell	25	28
25.1	Ryan Dunn enters the game for Mason Plumlee	25	28
13.0	Monte Morris personal foul	25	28
13.0	Oso Ighodaro enters the game for Monte Morris	25	28
9.1	Quentin Grimes out of bounds bad pass turnover	25	28
9.1	Dwight Powell enters the game for Kyrie Irving	25	28
9.1	Maxi Kleber enters the game for Spencer Dinwiddie	25	28
9.1	Monte Morris enters the game for Oso Ighodaro	25	28
2.1	Royce O'Neale misses 26-foot three point jumper	25	28
1.0	Josh Okogie offensive rebound	25	28
0.1	Josh Okogie misses two point shot	25	28
0.0	Suns offensive team rebound	25	28
0.0	End of the 1st Quarter	25	28

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Game Information

Time, Location & Referees

Venue

Mortgage Matchup Center

Phoenix, AZ

Date & Time

2:00 AM, December 28, 2024

Coverage

NBA League Pass, Arizona's Family 3TV, KFAA-TV, AZ Family Sports Net

Attendance

17,071

Referees

Mark Lindsay, Justin Van Duyne, Nate Green

2025-26 Southwest Standings

TEAM	W	L	PCT	STRK
San Antonio	43	16	.729	W11
Houston	37	22	.627	L1
Memphis	22	36	.379	W1
Dallas	21	38	.356	L2
New Orleans	19	42	.311	W4

2025-26 Pacific Standings

TEAM	W	L	PCT	STRK
LA Lakers	35	24	.593	W1
Phoenix	34	26	.567	W1
Golden State	31	29	.517	L1
LA Clippers	27	31	.466	L3
Sacramento	14	47	.230	W1

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Kyrie Irving scores 20, Mavs win first game after Doncic's injury by beating the Suns 98-89

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