Scheduled
Charlotte Hornets at Washington Wizards
2026-27 · Regular season · Emirates NBA Cup
Dallas Mavericks hand Oklahoma City Thunder first loss 120-96 as Cooper Flagg has 26 points and 8 assists
Cooper Flagg had 26 points and 8 assists and Dallas hit 16 threes as the Mavericks beat a short-handed Thunder team that went 5-of-32 from deep.
In this article
Cooper Flagg had 26 points and 8 assists, P.J. Washington scored 18, and the Dallas Mavericks handed the short-handed Oklahoma City Thunder their first loss of the season, 120-96, at American Airlines Center on Wednesday, October 28. Dallas made 16 three-pointers, led by as many as 27 in the fourth quarter and moved to 3-2. The Thunder are 4-1.
Oklahoma City played without Jalen Williams (fractured fibula), Cason Wallace, Chet Holmgren (knee) and Alex Caruso. Ajay Mitchell scored 29 points on 12-of-20 shooting and Shai Gilgeous-Alexander had 21, but the rest of the Thunder went 17-of-48 from the floor, and the team made just 5 of 32 threes.
How it turned
Kyrie Irving scored 11 points in the first quarter, all on jumpers, including a three with 10.4 seconds left that put Dallas up 33-30. It was his first regular-season home game since he tore the ACL in his left knee in March 2025. Daniel Gafford added the first made three of his NBA career, a 22-footer off a Flagg pass early in the first quarter.
Video: NBA / X.
Marcus Sasser’s pull-up three made it 54-42 midway through the second quarter, and Dallas led 65-59 at halftime. Oklahoma City got within 65-61 early in the third, then the Mavericks scored 13 of the next 15 points. Irving, Max Christie, Washington, Zaccharie Risacher and Flagg all scored before Gafford finished an alley-oop from Flagg for a 78-63 lead with 7:30 left in the quarter.
Video: Dallas Mavericks / X.
Flagg scored 10 points in the third quarter and Dallas led 94-81 going into the fourth. Mitchell scored 10 of the Thunder’s first 12 points in the fourth quarter, but Washington answered with a three, a layup and a pull-up jumper, and Christie’s three with 2:11 left made it 120-93.
The numbers
Flagg shot 10-of-23 with 5 rebounds and no turnovers in 33 minutes. Washington added 9 rebounds, Gafford had 7 points and 11 rebounds, and Risacher scored 13 on 5-of-6 shooting off the bench. Caleb Martin, Morez Johnson Jr. and Sasser each scored 10. Dallas had 30 assists on 46 baskets and outscored Oklahoma City 17-0 in fast-break points.
Oklahoma City’s side
Isaiah Hartenstein had 10 points and 14 rebounds. Gilgeous-Alexander shot 7-of-19 and 1-of-6 from three, Jared McCain went 3-of-13 and missed all six of his threes, and Josh Dix went 1-of-8. The Thunder never led by more than three.
What’s next
The Mavericks host the Houston Rockets on Friday, October 30, at 8 p.m. ET (3 a.m. Saturday Cairo time). The Thunder visit Houston on Saturday, October 31, at 8:30 p.m. ET (3:30 a.m. Sunday Cairo time).
Full box score and play-by-play: Game Center. All-time head-to-head.
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