Cleveland Cavaliers got the better of the Dallas Mavericks even without the team's all-time leading scorer LeBron James with a 99-98 victory at the Quicken Loans Arena on Wednesday night.

The 2014 USA Basketball Male Athlete of the Year Kyrie Irving stepped up and took charge to deliver in the absence of the team's main man.

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Irving scored a game-high 33 points and got a key steal on Dirk Nowitzki in the dying seconds of the game to secure the victory for the Cavaliers, who are just 4-12 without James in the past two seasons.

"Honestly, it was a personal challenge," Irving, who went 13 for 28 from the field and shot perfect 4 of 4 from the foul line, said. "We know what the record is. I know I took it personally and I have to lead the team whether he's in or out."

Cavaliers head coach Tyronn Lue opted to rest James as part of his plans to keep the team's starters fresh for the upcoming playoffs. The Cavaliers did not really miss the services of the four-time MVP until the Mavericks made a charge and stormed back from an 18-point deficit in the final twelve minutes of the game.

Irving got plenty of offensive support from Kevin Love, who finished the game with a double-double production of 23 points and 18 rebounds. Channing Frye added 14 points and J.R. Smith contributed 13 points, four assists and three steals for the winners.

Cleveland closed the first half leading with 57-51 and made a 27-17 run in the third quarter to extend their lead to 16 points 84-68. In the fourth quarter, Dallas rallied and made a 27-13 charge to narrow the gap within two with a step back jump shot by Nowitzki that made it 97-95 with 1:11 minutes to go.

Irving made the steal and converted the free shot after being fouled by Nowitzki with just 02.3 ticks left to play.

Nowitzki and David Lee scored 20 points each for the Mavericks.

Tagsnba recap, cleveland cavaliers, Dallas Mavericks, Lebron James, Kyrie Irving, Kevin Love, NBA