Nikola Jokic, Jamal Murray benched in fourth quarter as Nuggets fall to Mavericks

DALLAS — On Monday, Nuggets coach Michael Malone was asked about his team’s recent success on the road. After going 7-19 away from Pepsi Center to start the season, Denver ripped off four straight wins.

“Now we’re just a team that is on fire on the road,” Malone said.

The sarcasm was dripping in his voice when he said it. Yes, Denver managed to start a three-game road swing with wins over Memphis and Cleveland. But perhaps Malone suspected that his team wasn’t out of the woods yet.

Completing a perfect 3-0 road trip proved too difficult for the Nuggets on Tuesday. The Dallas Mavericks, a team whose owner got fined last month for saying “losing is our best option,” hit a barrage of threes and defeated Denver 118-107.

Dallas hit 15-27 shots from three-point territory. Dirk Nowitzki and Yogi Ferrell both hit the first five threes they attempted, and they finished a combined 11-14 from deep.

A disastrous third quarter doomed Denver’s chances. The Mavericks outscored the Nuggets 38-23 in the decisive 12-minutes stretch. Rookie Dennis Smith Jr. scored 11 of his 18 points during the period. Smith Jr. repeatedly hurt Denver with drives to the basket in transition. He also knocked down a pair of threes.

Denver’s bench cut the Mavericks’ advantage to five midway through the fourth quarter but Dallas responded and pushed its lead back to double digits a few minutes later.

Nikola Jokic had a quiet game. He didn’t score until midway through the third quarter. He finished with four points on 2-9 shooting. Jokic and starting point guard Jamal Murray didn’t play at all in the fourth.

The Nuggets shot 41.3 percent from the field as a team. They dropped to 35-29 with the loss.