DALLAS – The Dallas Mavericks turned a near-collapse into a feel-good statement win Thursday night, riding another monster performance from rookie phenom Cooper Flagg to a 116–114 overtime victory over the East-leading Detroit Pistons.

Flagg poured in 23 points and grabbed 10 rebounds, once again looking like the best player on the floor in crunch time. The 18-year-old – who turns 19 on Sunday – is on a serious heater, now averaging 25.4 points over his last eight games as the Mavericks have quietly won six of their last eight to move to 11-18.

Dallas led by as many as 18 in the third quarter before Detroit roared back behind Cade Cunningham, who put up a monster 29-point, 10-rebound, 10-assist triple-double. The Pistons, now 21-6 after a scorching 15-2 start, kept coming despite a brutal shooting night from deep and multiple ejections and injuries.

In overtime, though, the Mavs’ new core punched back. With the game tied late, Flagg and Anthony Davis delivered the closing combo Dallas needed. Flagg lofted a perfect alley-oop to Davis for a go-ahead jam that put the Mavericks up 114-112 with 3:10 left in OT. After Cunningham answered with a tough bank shot, Davis went back to work, hammering home another dunk with 1:32 remaining that would stand as the game-winner.

From there, the Mavs’ defense did just enough. Cunningham, who had torched Dallas all night, went just 2-for-7 in the extra period and missed a floater with seven seconds left that would have tied it. Jalen Duren grabbed the rebound, missed a putback in traffic, and Davis sealed it by snatching the final board with 0.9 seconds on the clock.

Davis, returning from a left calf contusion that kept him out of Dallas’ previous game, shook off a brutal start from the field to make his presence felt when it mattered. He missed his first eight shots but finished with 15 points on 7-of-18 shooting, including those two thunderous overtime dunks that sent the American Airlines Center into a frenzy.

Detroit absolutely mauled Dallas on the offensive glass, finishing with 25 offensive rebounds and a 30-15 edge in second-chance points. Duren bullied his way to 17 points and 13 rebounds, living on the glass. The Pistons’ one fatal flaw: they simply could not buy a three. Detroit shot a season-worst 18.2% from deep (6-for-33), and that cold shooting opened the door just wide enough for Flagg and the Mavs to sneak through.

The game got chippy in the first half.

Pistons starter Ausar Thompson was ejected late in the second quarter after arguing a foul and making contact with official John Goble. Duncan Robinson exited early in the third with a knee injury and did not return, further thinning Detroit’s rotation. Cunningham picked up a technical in the final minute of the first half, and head coach J.B. Bickerstaff added his own tech as the teams headed to the locker room.

For Dallas, this was the kind of resilient, happy-to-be-here-but-not-scared win that can help reset a season. They blew a big lead, got hammered on the boards, and still found a way to knock off one of the league’s hottest teams behind their rising superstar rookie and a veteran big closing strong in overtime.

Before the game, head coach Jason Kidd said there is still no concrete timetable for the return of nine-time All-Star Kyrie Irving as he continues to recover from ACL surgery last March, promising only another update “in another month.” Until then, nights like this make it clear: this is Cooper Flagg’s show, and the Mavericks are starting to have some fun again.

Next up, the Pistons return home to host Charlotte on Saturday, while the Mavericks hit the road for a tough matchup in Philadelphia the same night … with Flagg rolling, Davis back in the mix, and some real positive vibes finally building in Dallas.