Warriors wanted to challenge missed call vs. Mavs, but couldn't

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Luka Doncic got the last laugh in his epic duel with Steph Curry on Saturday night, but he probably shouldn't have.

The Dallas Mavericks beat the Warriors 134-132 at American Airlines Center, and Doncic gave the Mavs what ultimately proved to be an insurmountable seven-point lead with 44.5 seconds remaining in regulation.

Subsequent replays indicated, however, that the ball went out of bounds off Kristaps Porzingis along the baseline before Doncic's dagger. Had the Warriors gotten the ball, they would have trailed 128-124 with under a minute remaining.

Warriors coach Steve Kerr admitted in his postgame video conference with reporters he wanted to challenge the play, but he was unable to initiate a review under the NBA's rules because it wasn't called on the floor.

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Golden State still had its chances, though. Curry cut into Dallas' lead with a 3-point play, making it 131-130 with 28.6 seconds left. The Warriors didn't foul the Mavericks as they advanced the ball upcourt, and Doncic drew a double-team from Juan Toscano-Anderson before dishing to Maxi Klebler in the left corner. With Draymond Green late to close out, Klebler knocked down the 3-pointer and gave Dallas a 134-130 lead with 6.3 seconds to go.

Kerr told reporters the defensive possession followed the Warriors' plan by forcing Doncic to pass.

"We did not think at all about fouling," Kerr told reporters (h/t Drew Shiller). "There was a 4-second differential and we had a timeout left. We got the ball out of Luka's hands and Maxi made the shot. You just gotta hand it to him."

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