The Houston Rockets outscored the Dallas Mavericks by 11 points in the pivotal fourth quarter on Thursday.  That difference ultimately led to a hard-fought 153-149 overtime victory in favor of the Rockets. Following the game, both Mavs head coach Rick Carlisle and superstar Luka Doncic were quick to take ownership for their team's opening defeat.

In his post-game press conference, Carlisle explained why he deserves the brunt of the blame for the loss, and not his players:

Carlisle emphasized how this defeat boiled down to proper execution. He credited his players for showing up tonight, and wanted to take the pressure off of them by taking ownership of this disappointing loss.

For his part, however, Doncic was likewise unwilling to pin the blame on anybody else but himself.

To be fair to Doncic, he did put up an amazing triple-double with 28 points, 13 rebounds, and 10 assists, so it wasn't a terrible game for him whatsoever. Then again, he did go 11-of-27 shooting (1-of-9 from distance), 5-of-9 from the line, and committed a whopping eight turnovers on the evening, so you could also see where the frustration is coming from for the young stud. Expect Luka Doncic to bounce back the following game.

On the other hand, credit needs to be given to one James Harden. The beard absolutely balled out for his Houston Rockets. The former MVP logged 49 points on 14-of-20 from the floor, along with three triples, nine rebounds, eight assists, three steals, and three blocks. Harden also went 18-of-21 from the charity stripe, pretty much willing his side to victory in this one.

The Mavs are off on Saturday, but will be back in action on Sunday as they take on another Western Conference side in the Phoenix Suns.