DALLAS (AP) — Cooper Flagg scored 21 points and Kyrie Irving added 14 after a sluggish first half for both stars as the Dallas Mavericks beat the Utah Jazz 112-100 in an NBA Cup game Friday night.
P.J. Washington scored 22 of his season-high 26 points in a first half that ended in a 57-all tie, setting the stage for Flagg and Irving to take over after the break.
Flagg scored 17 in the second half, while Irving had all but two of his points after halftime
after starting 1 of 11 from the field. While Flagg's scoring lagged before the break, he had six rebounds and assists in the first half before finishing with 10 and seven, respectively.
Lauri Markkanen scored 24 points and rookie Darryn Peterson had 21 for the Jazz, who lost their seventh straight game to drop to 1-8.
Flagg and Irving scored 21 of the points on a 22-10 run that turned a one-point Dallas deficit into an 81-70 lead late in the third quarter. Flagg had 13 points and Irving eight.
The Mavericks kept the run going after Irving went to the bench.
Morez Johnson Jr. had a one-handed, alley-oop dunk to clinch his first double-double, and the Dallas lead reached 16 before Utah's Josh Okogie beat the third-quarter buzzer with a 3-pointer. Johnson tied his season best of 13 points and had 17 rebounds.
Washington was 5 of 6 from 3-point range and made all five of his free throws in the first half. His sixth and final 3 helped Dallas maintain a double-digit lead throughout the fourth quarter.
Dallas' Santi Aldama had eight points and nine rebounds in his first game since Feb. 4 last season with Memphis. The 7-footer was part of a six-team trade in the summer. Aldama had right knee surgery in March.
Jazz: At Minnesota on Sunday.
Mavericks: Host Brooklyn on Sunday.
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