Mavericks Rally Past Rockets 116-111

Kyrie Irving scored 35 points and the Dallas Mavericks rallied to beat the Houston Rockets 116-111 on Friday night, handing Houston its first loss of the season in an NBA Cup opener.

Irving put up 26 of his points after halftime, including a jumper that gave Dallas a 102-100 lead it held the rest of the way. Cooper Flagg added 33 points for the Mavericks, and Daniel Gafford contributed 18 points.

Kevin Durant led Houston with 28 points but missed two free throws with the Rockets trailing by two and 1:53 on the clock. Amen Thompson, who finished with 15 points, also missed a pair from the line with 42 seconds left after P.J. Washington threw the ball to him on a turnover. Houston shot 24 of 33 at the line.

Flank answered both Houston misses with baskets on the other end, including a three-point play. Gafford sank two free throws with 11 seconds left, and Dallas closed the game by fouling intentionally with a three-point lead in the final 10 seconds; Irving made six straight free throws to seal it. His streak of 54 consecutive made free throws is the longest active run in the NBA, dating to before a torn ACL in his left knee sidelined him for 19 months.

Jabari Smith Jr. scored 22 points for Houston, 10 of them in the second quarter, when the Rockets outscored Dallas 31-17. Fred VanVleet added 16 points. With Houston's loss, idle Memphis at 5-0 stands as the NBA's last unbeaten team.

Houston hosts Oklahoma City on Saturday night. Dallas hosts Sacramento on Monday night.