MINNEAPOLIS—Luka Doncic scored 15 of his 33 points in the fourth quarter Wednesday night, May 22, to lift the Dallas Mavericks to a 108–105 victory over the Minnesota Timberwolves in Game 1 of the NBA’s Western Conference finals.
Kyrie Irving put up 24 of his 30 in the first half for the Mavericks, who trailed 102–98 after a 3-pointer by Anthony Edwards with 3:37 left. An 8–0 Dallas run went unanswered until the Wolves managed a tip-in with 10.5 seconds to go.
For the first time in six tries under Coach Jason Kidd, the Mavericks won the first game of a playoff series. Game 2 is set for Friday night in Minneapolis.
Jaden McDaniels had his third straight 20-plus-point game with 24 points for the Wolves, but Edwards—who earned his first All-NBA selection prior to the game, on the second team—was stifled for 19 points by a strong Mavericks team effort. Minnesota’s Karl-Anthony Towns needed a late burst to get to 16 points and finished 6 for 20 from the floor.
The star power in this series is strong, and for the first night at least, the Mavericks got what they needed from their leading duo while the Wolves largely struggled to run the offense around theirs.
Dallas had a 62–38 advantage in points in the paint to offset a 6-for-25 shooting performance from deep.
“Terrible offense down the stretch. Bad shots, turnovers, no composure,” Wolves Coach Chris Finch said. “We’ve got to be better in clutch moments.”
Towns came to life with a long jumper, a lob to Rudy Gobert for a slam, and a 3-pointer in a two-minute burst to give the Wolves the lead back with 4:39 to go. Doncic finally ended a 10–0 Minnesota run with a 3-pointer. P.J. Washington, who had 13 points and seven rebounds, hit from deep to put the Mavericks back in front with 1:56 to go.
Towns thought he tied the game with a putback dunk on the next possession, but that was waved off for basket interference.
Edwards, who went scoreless in the third quarter, had 11 rebounds and eight assists.
Neither team led by more than nine points.
Doncic was relatively quiet until he scored seven straight points over 63 seconds early in the fourth quarter. The Mavericks stretched that to a 13–0 run for a 97–89 lead that Edwards finally ended with a 3-pointer after another helter-skelter possession.
The Wolves had two days off after dethroning defending champion Denver with a Game 7 comeback from a 20-point deficit to win a second-round series. The transition was sharp from the Nuggets and NBA most valuable player Nikola Jokic’s deliberate and powerful style to the pick-and-roll-heavy Mavericks.
The Wolves frequently lost their opponents off screens for wide-open dunks, and the Mavericks moved with a purpose that kept Minnesota from consistently setting its half-court defense around NBA defensive player of the year Gobert at the rim.
Irving’s stunning burst on the break and on the drive presented a unique challenge the Wolves and their league-leading defense didn’t face in the last round. Minnesota held the Nuggets to an average of 85 points over its four wins in the series.
“[Irving] got us going. Without him, we would probably be down 20 at halftime,” Doncic said. “I had to help him in the second half a little bit. So, we switched roles this time.”
McDaniels, who played his usual relentless defense on the perimeter, was the catalyst on the other end of the court too, with five 3-pointers in the first half. Towns, though, had trouble getting shots to fall, and Edwards found his driving lanes constantly clogged.
“He’s an amazing player. We have to put multiple bodies on him,” Doncic said. “If he’s going one-on-one, it’s kind of tough to stop him.”
The Mavericks have cranked up their defense since adding Daniel Gafford and Washington at the trade deadline, as top-seeded Oklahoma City can attest after losing in six games in the last round.
The Wolves have had the superior depth in each round so far, and Kyle Anderson gave them a vital 11 points in the first half. Naz Reid had 15 points, including a fast-break layup followed by a steal from Doncic to set up a 3-pointer by Edwards at the end of the first quarter that put the Wolves up 33–27 and had the crowd roaring.
The Wolves and these long-frustrated fans have reached unfamiliar territory with this team that has given the franchise just its second Western Conference finals appearance ever. The Mavericks were here just two years ago, but before Irving arrived. He’s the only player of significance in this series with a championship ring, having helped Cleveland win it all in 2016.
“No one panicked. There was just a lot of trust, no matter how bad or how good we’re playing,” Mr. Kidd said.
