Kyrie Irving showcases why Mavericks traded for him in win over Jazz

The Dallas Mavericks went into Monday night's game against the Utah Jazz as the seventh seed in the Western Conference.

They had lost six of their last eight games and each loss came by an average of just over four points. They were playing well enough to win games but couldn't get it done when it mattered most.

What matters most is clutch time, or as Kyrie Irving calls it, "winning time".

Kyrie Irving showcases why Mavericks traded for him in win over Jazz

Irving scored 13 of the final 16 points for Dallas and closed the game out exceptionally to help give the Mavericks a 120-116 victory over the Jazz. He was a perfect eight of eight from the free-throw line and four of five from the field for 17 points in the fourth quarter.

Irving didn't let this game escape from the Mavericks' hands. He helped them grab a win in their first game of a back-to-back.

Although the Mavericks got the victory, the most important thing in the sport, they still let Utah hang around.

The Jazz were without Walker Kessler, Jordan Clarkson, and Collin Sexton and still made this a game all the way until the final buzzer.

"No matter who you play this time of year, everybody is dangerous."

- Mavericks head coach Jason Kidd

Kidd realizes that the Jazz are playing for the playoffs just like the Mavericks, and wanted to steal a game at the American Airlines Center. The Mavericks prevailed past the danger of the Jazz to win behind a hot shooting night from Tim Hardaway Jr. and a great closing effort by Irving.

Hardaway Jr. was red hot in the first half as he shot a scorching five of six from downtown and helped the Mavericks grab a 14-point lead early in the second quarter. But the Jazz crawled back as the Mavericks weren't able to keep their foot on the gas.

"If we’re up double digits we‘ve got to do a better job of staying the course, locking in more on the defensive concepts and the personnel."

- Tim Hardaway Jr.

Hardaway Jr. understands that he has been electric in the first half of games, but the Mavericks haven't been able to hold on to these early leads, causing both of the last two games to come down to the wire.

"The last few games have been really close and we haven't closed out as well as we would have liked."

- Kyrie Irving

The Mavericks, led by Irving, were able to get their clutch time mishaps in order and got it done during "winning time" against the Jazz.

This was Dallas' first game of a back-to-back as they travel to New Orleans to play the Pelicans on Wednesday night. The Mavericks sit fifth in the Western Conference and are just 2.5 games behind the Phoenix Suns for the fourth seed and home-court advantage in the first round of the playoffs.