This wasn’t how the Dallas Mavericks envisioned hitting the road.

After trailing by as many as 17 points in fourth quarter, the Mavericks staged yet another valiant comeback, a trend all season, after a mostly-sluggish first three periods but ultimately fell short, 95-88.

Dennis Smith Jr., Harrison Barnes and Wesley Matthews helped lead the latest comeback by turning Miami over several times in the final period. Barnes had a chance to cut the lead to two in the final minute, but went 1-of-2 from the line to keep the Miami lead at 91-88. He finished with 20 points to lead Dallas.

Goran Dragic scored the next time down for the Heat to give Miami a more comfortable five-point advantage.

Smith Jr.’s contribution to the comeback included several trips to the free throw line (he finished 5-of-6 from the stripe) and a soaring two-handed flush over Josh Richards.

Matthews, who is having his best season as a Maverick, fought through several hard bumps and bruises to come up with several key three-pointers and gritty defensive stops. He finished with 19 points.

Dallas led, 26-22, after the first, but managed just 35 points over the next two quarters as Miami took a 75-61 lead into the final quarter.

After riding a four-game winning streak to claw back into the fringes of the playoff picture at 13-25 a month ago, Dallas dropped its seventh game in the last eight contests and 10th in its last 13.

It’s the Mavericks’ fourth straight loss overall as they prepare to hit the road for a four-game West Coast swing starting with a road matchup against the Suns on Wednesday followed by away contests against the Kings and Clippers on Saturday and Monday, respectively.

Dallas closes out the road trip on Thurs, Feb. 8 at Golden State.

With its playoff chances fading fast, Dallas continued to pile on the minutes for rookie point guard Dennis Smith Jr. With veteran guard J.J. Barea sidelined due to injury, the explosive rookie got even more opportunities and played a season-high 35 minutes.

Monday’s loss marked the 10th straight game Smith has played more than 30 minutes.