A sharp 10-point cameo from Australian Patty Mills wasn't enough to see San Antonio through to the next round of the NBA playoffs, the Spurs edged 113-111 by the Dallas Mavericks to force a seventh and deciding game.
Mills earned his numbers on four-of-six shooting from 16 minutes of court time and initially also appeared to have the chance to drop a three-pointer to win the match and secure the series.
But his shot, which fell short, would not have counted anyway as it was after the buzzer.
During his stint Mills had two three-pointers and worked nicely alongside fellow point-guard Tony Parker, the Frenchman bagging a team-high 22 points.
For the Mavericks, Monta Ellis scored 12 of his 29 points to lead a fourth-quarter comeback and Dirk Nowitzki added 22.
The eighth-seeded Mavericks bounced back from consecutive losses by handing the Spurs what was their first road defeat when leading after three quarters this season.
San Antonio took a nine-game winning streak against their Texas rivals into the sixth postseason meeting between the teams.
Game seven will be played on Sunday in San Antonio.
Meanwhile Deron Williams scored 23 points, overcoming a second-half injury, as the Brooklyn Nets also ensured a seventh game in their first-round series by beating the Toronto Raptors 97-83.
Despite appearing to hurt his left foot or ankle early in the third quarter, Williams dominated his matchup with Kyle Lowry and helped the Nets put it away with a three-pointer with 1:13 left that made it 92-79.
The decider is on Sunday in Toronto, with the winner advancing to face the defending champions, Miami Heat.
It became the fourth first-round series ticketed for a do-or-die game in these playoffs.
DeMar DeRozan scored 28 for the Raptors, who will have to go the distance if they are to win a seven-game series for the first time in franchise history. They haven't won any postseason series since 2001.
Meanwhile Portland advanced to the second round of the postseason for the first time in 14 years by beating the Rockets four games to three.
The Rockets appeared to be heading to a victory and a game seven after Chandler Parsons scored on a reverse layup under the basket with 0.9 seconds left in the fourth.
But then Nicolas Batum inbounded the ball to Lillard, whose shot from near the top of the arc over Parsons sailed cleanly through the rim and set off a wild celebration.
"I figured it would be tough to get my hands on the ball," Lillard said. "I raised up and snapped my wrist. I got a good look and I am so excited to win."
The Trail Blazers won their first playoff series since May 16, 2000 when they beat Utah in five games. They had dropped seven consecutive series.
Portland will next face the winner of the series between San Antonio and Dallas.
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