BOSTON — Kyrie Irving exited TD Garden as a victor for the first time in four years on Wednesday night after an impressive 127-120 Dallas Mavericks road victory over the Boston Celtics.

Irving was playing for a shorthanded Dallas squad that was without All-Star trade addition Anthony Davis and three other rotation players in the win. However, that did not stop them from dominating three quarters against a lethargic Celtics squad coming off a three-game road trip.

Irving scored 19 points in the victory and tallied a game-high four steals helping Dallas split the season series with the defending champions.

It was the first win in Boston for Irving since he purposefully stomped on the Celtics’ center court logo after a Game 4 win in the 2021 first-round as a member of the Brooklyn Nets. Four years later, Irving acknowledged that the lengthy streak had been a motivator in his performance.

“To be honest with you, I was kind of just keeping it as another game, but I’d be lying to you guys if I said I’m not aware of the record I have in this building since 2021,” Irving said. “It’s more of a motivation factor for me than anything now because they’re the best of the best. They are the champions in our league until another champion is crowned. You know you want to play your absolute best against them, and they’re going to do everything in their power to stop me.”

Irving had gone 1-15 overall since that Nets-Celtics playoff series in 2021.

“I’ve said it in the past: I feel – we both feel they know my game well enough,” Irving said. “They send a lot of double-teams at me, a lot of different reads that they force me in. But it only makes me better, and I’m just grateful, man. It’s what competitive basketball is about, competitive sports. It’s just continue to get better, going against the best of the best and coming out with the W, doing whatever it takes to win.”

Irving and the Mavericks will look to build off that momentum at home Saturday night when they face off against the Houston Rockets in what’s expected to be the Dallas debut for Anthony Davis.

• BETTING: Check out our MA sports betting guide, where you can learn basic terminology, definitions and how to read odds for those interested in learning how to bet in Massachusetts.