Slide Stopped: P.J. Washington Carries the First Half, Flagg and Irving Close It, Mavs Beat Jazz 112-100

By Marcus Delaney, RF Sports Radio Mavericks voice

Mavs Nation, for one half on Friday night it looked like Sacramento all over again. Then the stars woke up. Dallas beat the Utah Jazz 112-100 at American Airlines Center, snapped a two-game skid, and moved to 2-0 in NBA Cup group play.

The facts

Per the Associated Press and Eddie Sefko of Mavs.com, P.J. Washington scored 22 of his season-high 26 points in the first half, hitting five of six threes before the break, and that kept Dallas alive in a game that was tied 57-57 at halftime. Cooper Flagg and Kyrie Irving shot a combined 3-of-17 in the first half with six points between them.

The turn came midway through the third quarter. With the game tied at 70, Flagg and Irving sparked a 9-0 run that grew to 19-6 over the final seven minutes of the quarter, and Dallas led 89-76 entering the fourth and 94-76 a minute into it. Flagg finished with 21 points, 10 rebounds and seven assists. Irving had 14 points and three steals. Rookie Morez Johnson Jr. posted his first double-double of the season with 13 points and 17 rebounds. Santi Aldama made his Mavericks debut after returning from knee surgery and had eight points and nine rebounds in 13 minutes. Lauri Markkanen led Utah with 24.

Dallas is now 5-4 overall and 2-0 in Cup games, with group games left against Denver and Phoenix, per Mavs.com. The Jazz fell to 1-8. The Mavericks open a three-game homestand by hosting Brooklyn on Sunday and Indiana on Monday.

RF Sports Radio's take (opinion)

My take: this was the right answer, not a pretty one. Dallas was a seven-point favorite and played the first half like it had read too many of its own previews. What I liked is that the response came from the two players who struggled. Flagg did not sulk through a bad shooting half. He rebounded, he passed, and when the game opened up in the third, he attacked.

Washington deserves the headline, though. Twenty-two first-half points from your power forward is how you survive a cold night from the stars. And Morez Johnson Jr. grabbing 17 rebounds a game after Victor Wembanyama owned the glass is exactly the kind of statement a rookie should make.

The Aldama debut matters too. Eight and nine in 13 minutes is a reminder of why Dallas traded for him. A healthy Aldama gives this frontcourt real depth.

Opinion: the Cup math is now simple. Win one of the next two group games and Dallas is in strong shape for the knockout round. But the bigger lesson is the first half. Teams under .500 will keep testing whether the Mavericks take them seriously.

What to watch next

Watch Sunday's home game against Brooklyn and whether Aldama's minutes grow. For Friday's preview, read our Nov. 6 Jazz preview, and follow every game on our Dallas Mavericks page.

Radio question: was Friday's win proof the Mavs have learned from the Kings loss, or another warning that they start too slow against bad teams?

Sources: AP News - Flagg and Irving rebound from sluggish 1st half, Mavs beat Jazz 112-100; NBA.com/Mavs - Group effort helps Mavericks take down Jazz (Eddie Sefko); ESPN - Mavericks 112, Jazz 100 box score; RealGM - NBA scoreboard Nov 6, 2026.