The Dallas Mavericks find themselves on the outside looking in when it comes to the guaranteed playoff spots at the moment, but they’ve still got plenty of hope to force their way into the top six. They’re currently sitting in the eighth seed in the Western Conference with a 28-23 record and are two games behind the fifth place Sacramento Kings.

This hope is especially alive when stars Luka Doncic and Kyrie Irving are able to play against each other, especially when the two stars are able to stay healthy and play together. This was evidenced in their latest game against the Brooklyn Nets, a 119-107 victory that saw key contributions from both leading men.

Doncic put up one of his classic performances with a near-triple-double of 35 points, 17 rebounds, nine assists, two steals and one block with just one turnover. He shot an effective 13 of 27 overall and 4 of 11 from three, but did struggled from the free throw line making only 5 of 10 of his attempts. Doncic had one of his customary “fuck you” threes in the game as well, scoring from the logo to put the Nets further ahead by 20 points in the third quarter.

Irving wasn’t about to let himself get outdone, either. The mercurial guard had a strong outing with 36 points, five assists and two steals that included a highlight lob that showed a lot of bounce and will be played over and over on highlight reels this season.

The Western Conference has been an open bloodbath all season, and it will continue to do so until the playoffs start. The Mavericks may still have roster issues to fix, but Doncic and Irving showed the Nets that beating Dallas becomes a difficulty proposition when both of their stars are on their A-Game.

The Mavericks have a couple of tough games coming up next against the New York Knicks and Oklahoma City Thunder, so their two stars will need to step up against tough competition again.