MINNEAPOLIS — Following their Game 1 win, the Dallas Mavericks picked up another win at Target Center to start the Western Conference Finals with a 2-0 series lead. It came down to the Mavericks’ final offensive effort, when Luka Doncic sealed the victory with a step-back 3-pointer without Rudy Gobert, en route to a 109-108 Game 2 victory.
Minnesota used Towns early on, with a weak matchup against PJ Washington. Towns was initially 1/5 on field goals, but drew a foul and got five points early. Minnesota picked up the pace after a Mavericks turnover, but Mike Conley attacked Doncic trying to prevent the ICE coverage from using a screen, and attacked the space baseline to start the play off a side ball screen.
The game was close early on, with the Timberwolves leading 21-17 midway through the first period after Derrick Jones Jr. was blocked in transition and Gobert caught and finished. The early momentum was in Minnesota’s favor, with Dallas parlaying their positive plays into long runs.
Naz Reid got the momentum going with three-pointers late in the first quarter and early in the second. Towns took advantage of a poor showing against Washington to push Minnesota’s lead to double digits (11) for the first time in the game. Dallas responded by sending Lively to the free throw line, but Conley answered with a three-pointer to extend the Timberwolves’ lead to 12.
Doncic slid off a ball screen and made a step-back 3-pointer, but Minnesota continued to fight back against Dallas, with Towns on the inside as the focal point of the offense. Towns scored in the post against Washington and then found a lead in the corner to give the Timberwolves a 15-point lead. The Mavericks called a timeout. The lead grew to 17.
Dallas started to tighten up defensively but missed some good offensive opportunities, including Lively missing an open alley-oop attempt. Minnesota ended the first half up 60-48, with Edwards scoring 13 points, Conley and Reed each scoring in double figures with 12 points. Towns and Gobert added nine points and five rebounds at this stage.
Doncic played 21 of the first 24 minutes and had 16 points, six rebounds and five assists, but struggled to get into position in the first half, going 5-of-14 from the field and 2-of-8 from 3-point range. He was the team’s only double-figure scorer at this point, closely followed by Lively with eight points. Dallas finished the second quarter shooting 18-of-46 (39.1%) overall and 4-of-14 (28.6%) from deep.
The Mavericks continued to lead the offense with Doncic’s scoring and playmaking, and they pulled within six early in the second half. Turnovers stunted their progress at that point, but Dallas hung in there and eventually took the lead. Doncic was hitting 3-pointers and was running downhill attacks with more ease than he had earlier in the game.
With Doncic out, Jaden Hardy was impressive, repeatedly putting the Mavericks within two points, first with a three-pointer and then a lob pass to Gafford on a closeout attack. Irving also had a string of downhill plays, but Reed quickly sank a three-pointer off a flare set by the Horns and Minnesota ended the period up 86-79.
Doncic returned to the court in the fourth quarter, as did Irving, and Dallas went on an 8-0 run to take an 87-86 lead, with every point coming from Irving, who made two 3-pointers and assisted on one for Washington.
Minnesota went five-and-out to start the period as the Mavericks focused on collapsing the paint when Edwards attacked downhill. This led to a spray of passes that led to Reid hitting a three-pointer to retake the lead. Irving responded with a deep shot from outside his own arc. The game was tight and every possession mattered.
Dallas left Reed open and paid the price when Reed’s seventh 3-pointer gave Minnesota a 94-92 lead with 6:36 left. The Mavericks struggled to juggle double screeners, Gunneral breaking down the paint and Reed getting wide open shots.
Gafford finished off a series of touches in the paint that included a throw-ahead transition pass, rammed Conley to secure the catch and tossed up a scoop finish on his way to the ground, and Reed attacked again off the catch for a dunk to tie the score again. Dallas placed more emphasis on switching up those actions down the stretch.
Minnesota made a series of key plays in the paint to hold a three-point lead, while Irving made two free throws and lost the ball trying to attack Edwards. Irving recovered the ball and lobbed Lively for a dunk, while Conley sank a floater on the other end. Dallas came within one multiple times during that stretch.
Dallas switched to a stacked pick-and-roll, and Doncic found Lively behind Gobert, who caught and finished to extend the lead, but Conley answered with a floater. Irving tried his second three-point attempt to give the Mavericks some momentum, but missed after Jones’ first off-line shot. Edwards attacked Luck and got to the free throw line, making both for a three-point lead with under two minutes left in the game.
Irving drove deep with a double-drag action and used contact to draw a foul but missed both free throws. Dallas then fouled Edwards while he was attempting a pass in the bonus, and Edwards made both attempts before falling down by five. Irving made a 3-pointer from the corner with the shot clock running out to make it 108-106 with about a minute left.
Edwards got two points off a ball screen and passed to McDaniels on the baseline, who was quickly caught and challenged by the Mavericks, who turned the ball over. Dallas got the ball back with 47.3 seconds left and trailing by two points. Doncic stole the ball from Horns, and Gobert switched to Doncic, who missed a stepback in close range. Edwards then pivoted repeatedly near the nails and got stuck, turning the ball over.
The Mavericks again had the ball and a chance to tie or take the lead, this time with 12.8 seconds left in the fourth quarter. Doncic again connected with Gobert, who broke off the dribble and took the game-winning shot. Reed missed at the buzzer.
Moving forward, the series will continue on Sunday with Game 3 being played at the American Airlines Center as the first of two games.
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