Mavs rail against "worst mistake in history of NBA" after Warriors defeat
Dallas, Texas - The Golden State Warriors claimed rare back-to-back wins in the NBA with Wednesday's 127-125 victory at the Dallas Mavericks, but the game was marred by controversy after Kevon Looney's third-quarter uncontested dunk.
Stephen Curry scored 20 points with 13 assists as the reigning NBA champions secured consecutive wins on a road trip for the first time this season at American Airlines Center.
But the Mavs were left raging after Looney's uncontested dunk with 1:54 left in the third quarter from a Warriors inbound after a timeout, which Dallas had thought was their ball, meaning they subsequently lined up on the other half of the court.
Mavs owner Mark Cuban said they would contest the result of the game due to the incident, which he labeled the "worst officiating non call mistake possibly in the history of the NBA" on Twitter.
Star player Luka Dončić also flipped out, making a gesture in the refs direction which seemed to suggest an accusation of bribery.
Dončić fails with late attempt
Despite that, the Mavs could have won the game outright, with Dončić missing a two-point attempt under pressure from Draymond Green with 3.2 seconds left at 125-122.
That came after Curry's bounce-pass set up Green's three-point play, before the reigning NBA Finals MVP glided in for a two-point shot to open up the three-point buffer with 8.1 seconds to play.
Dončić, in his return after missing five games with a thigh injury, scored 30 points with seven rebounds and 17 assists. The Slovenian shot 11-of-27 from the field and six-of-10 from the stripe.
In Kyrie Irving's absence, 20-year-old guard Jaden Hardy was outstanding with six three-pointers in his 27 points.
The win is a major boost for Golden State's playoff hopes, moving to sixth in the West with a 38-36 record, while the Mavs drop to ninth with a 36-37 record, having lost five of their past seven games.
It was Golden State's first road win when trailing after the first quarter, having entered the game with a 0-20 record.
Cover photo: Collage: Tim Heitman / GETTY IMAGES NORTH AMERICA / Getty Images via AFP