Dec. 13—Entering Monday, a single point separated 50 all-time meetings between the Oklahoma City Thunder and Dallas Mavericks.

Like its predecessors, Monday’s game followed a similar script of a close contest that came down to the final moments of the fourth quarter. Despite the Mavericks leading by double digits in multiple points throughout the game, the Thunder answered back and closed the gap to single digits.

However, the Thunder simply ran out of time in the end despite a valiant comeback attempt.

With the shot clock winding down, Mavericks guard Spencer Dinwiddie heaved up a prayer and banked in a 29-foot three-pointer midway through the fourth quarter.

It was that kind of night for the Mavericks from outside.

If someone ever wants to learn about the value of the three-ball, this game is a textbook example. The Thunder had the more efficient shooting chart as it went 42-of-88 (47.7 percent) from the field. The Mavericks went 39-of-93 (41.9 percent) from the field but made 22 threepointers compared to the Thunder’s 10 three-pointers.

The 36-point difference gave the Mavericks plenty of room for error and cushion to make up for other areas in their game.

Here are three thoughts from the Thunder’s 121-114 loss to the Mavericks.

Luka vs. SGA Entering Monday, this game featured two of the top-three scorers of the league.

Leading scorer Luka Doncic averaged 32.9 points on 50.1 percent shooting and third-leading scorer Shai Gilgeous-Alexander averaged 30.8 points on 50.1 percent shooting.

Both players lived up to their billing. Doncic finished with 38 points on 13-of-27 shooting and 9-of-10 from the free-throw line, 11 rebounds and eight assists. Gilgeous-Alexander tied his career high with 42 points on 14-of-23 shooting and 13-of-13 from the freethrow line.

The Dallas crowd definitely got its money’s worth.

Isaiah Joe continues to show out in Dallas It seems like sharpshooter Isaiah Joe likes the mic’d-up rims in Dallas.

After being the unlikely hero the last time the Thunder played at Dallas in October as he scored 15 points in nine minutes in a comeback overtime win, Joe followed up with another stellar performance off the bench.

In 21 minutes, Joe finished with 12 points on 4-of-7 shooting from outside. The Thunder outscored the Mavericks by 11 points when Joe was on the floor.

On the season, Joe has been awesome for the Thunder. After being a late training camp addition following the Philadelphia 76ers waiving him, Joe has shot 32-of-68 (47.1 percent) from three this season.

When the Thunder need quick scoring from outside, Joe’s managed to provide it as a quick spark off the bench. A pleasant surprise from someone who was viewed as an afterthought when he joined the team.

Coming home for the holidays After 11 days and five games on the road, the Thunder finally return home to Oklahoma City.

The Thunder tallied up 4,938 traveled miles in its longest road trip since the 2016-17 season, per the Bally Sports broadcast.

The Thunder will play its first home game in two weeks on Wednesday, Dec. 14 against the Miami Heat.

After spending the first two weeks of December on the road, the Thunder will close out the month playing eight of its nine remaining games at home.