There weren’t many stops against Kyrie Irving, but the Nuggets got the two that mattered most.

The Mavericks’ guard made 17 of his first 20 shots after banking in a fadeaway over Peyton Watson’s outstretched hand with 1:40 left. That gave Irving 43 points and the Mavericks a two-point lead.

“That’s just one of those demoralizing ones,” Watson told the Denver Gazette in the post-game locker room after Denver completed a 5-0 homestand with a 122-120 win over the Mavericks.

“You tip your hat to somebody who’s going to make a shot like that. You just get back on offense. You just try the next time down again, which is what I did.”

After Nikola Jokic answered with a tip-in, capping his 37-point night and tying the game with 49 seconds left, Dallas went right back to Irving, who made his first six 3-pointers of the night. Watson, who sealed Denver’s win over Oklahoma City on Wednesday, came up with another clutch block to deny Irving a 7-for-7 start from deep.

“Peyton played really good defense. Of course, Kyrie is really good, an amazing player,” Jokic said.

“Even CB, the whole night those two were doing a great job. It seems like every game is a close game for us, which is a good thing, probably.”

Michael Porter Jr. grabbed the defensive rebound and scored what ended up being the game-winner on the other end. Jamal Murray passed to Porter on the right wing and drove past Irving for a floater with seven seconds left.

“I felt like if I gave it right back to him, he would’ve ended up having to take a real tough shot,” Porter said.

“I just got a step on him off the closeout and got an easy, clean look at a floater.”

Denver’s second, crucial stop came after a Dallas timeout. The Mavericks in-bounded the ball to Irving, and he got to a step back 3. Christian Braun recovered and contested Irving’s final shot of the night, which bounced off the back of the rim.

“No matter what, you can’t give up a 3,” Braun told the Denver Gazette of his top priority on the game’s final possession. “The only way you lose that game, you know, is if you give up a 3. He got to the 3-point line. … It was a tough look, contested look, It’s hard to get a guy off the 3-point line from the corner, but it was a tough shot. If he hits that, you kind of got to give it to him.”

The Nuggets gave plenty to Irving on the night, but Luka Doncic managed 24 points on 19 shots, and Daniel Gafford was the only other Mavericks player with more than 15 points. Murray finished as Denver’s second-leading scorer with 18 points. Porter’s game-winner gave him 17 points on 11 shots, while Watson made all four of his 3-pointers and finished with 16 points. Braun (14) and Julian Strawther (12) gave the Nuggets six players in double figures.

If the final 3 would’ve dropped, it would have been the second time in as many seasons that Irving beat the Nuggets on a buzzer-beater. Last season, Irving hit a left-handed floater from 15 feet over Jokic. A couple of third-year wings made sure history didn’t repeat itself.

“You’ve got to give him credit,” Malone said of Irving. “He’s a special player – one of the greatest ball-handling guards ever and one of the greatest finishing guards ever.”

NUGGETS 122, MAVERICKS 120

What happened: The Nuggets won the first quarter by six but fell behind 63-60 at halftime. Denver regained the lead in the third and started the fourth up by three. One last bucket from Michael Porter Jr. and a final defensive stop helped Denver improve to 7-3.

What went right: Nikola Jokic recorded another triple-double before the third quarter ended. An offensive rebound in the middle of the third quarter extended Jokic’s triple-double streak to four games. After finishing with 37 points, 18 rebounds and 15 assists, Jokic has a triple-double in six of Denver’s first 10 games.

What went wrong: The Mavericks scored 42 of their first-half points in the paint. Dallas center Daniel Gafford led the charge, making his first seven shots, all of which came in the paint. The Mavericks finished with 62 points in the paint.

Highlight of the night: Jokic’s 15th assist was a beauty. After grabbing his 14th rebound, Jokic started the break and hit Jamal Murray with a behind-the-back pass in transition. Murray hit a tough mid-range jumper to put Denver up one with a little more than seven minutes left.

Up next: The Nuggets start a three-game road trip Friday in November.