Luka Doncic hits game-winning three-pointer to put Mavs 2-0 up on Timberwolves
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Dallas Mavericks guard Luka Doncic registered a triple-double with 32 points, 10 rebounds and 13 assists.
PHOTO: REUTERS
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MINNESOTA – The Dallas Mavericks needed a big shot as they trailed in the final seconds in Game 2 of the National Basketball Association (NBA) Western Conference Finals on May 24.
Luka Doncic was on the floor, and nobody questioned who would get the opportunity to shoot or find the open man.
“The play was to get Luka the ball, and let Luka do what Luka does in those moments,” Mavs coach Jason Kidd said.
“We talked about taking a two – we were down only two – but when he got to dancing with (Rudy) Gobert, you could see that the step-back (three) was coming. And the rest was history.”
Doncic knocked down the go-ahead three-pointer with 3.8 seconds left and Dallas held on for a 109-108 win over the Minnesota Timberwolves in Minneapolis.
The Slovenian guard registered a triple-double with 32 points, 10 rebounds and 13 assists. Kyrie Irving finished with 20 points and Daniel Gafford scored 16.
The Mavs seized a 2-0 lead in the best-of-seven series as they head home to Dallas for the next two games. Game 3 is on May 26.
“First to four. Nothing’s won,” Doncic insisted on ESPN. “You’ve just got to think about the next game.”
Gafford provided energy for the Mavs throughout the game. In one sequence, he blocked a three-pointer and sprinted the length of the court to finish with a layup to give the Mavericks a 96-94 edge with 5min 55sec remaining. He finished with five blocked shots, earning praise from Irving who said that “everybody contributed”.
Naz Reid led the Timberwolves with 23 points off the bench, but missed his final attempt from three-point range as the buzzer sounded. Anthony Edwards scored 21 points, grabbed five rebounds and dished seven assists for Minnesota, while Mike Conley contributed 18 points.
The home side were leading 108-103 with 1min 29sec to go before Dallas made their final run.
Irving drained a three-pointer with 65sec left. Jaden McDaniels and Edwards committed turnovers on Minnesota’s next two possessions before Doncic’s winning shot.
Edwards pointed the finger at himself after shooting five of 17 from the field.
“They’re just showing me crowds, man, sitting in the gaps,” Edwards said of the Dallas defence.
“But I’m turning down a lot of shots, like my mid-rangers and stuff, I’m turning a lot of those down. But we’re getting open looks, so I’m not tripping.”
Timberwolves coach Chris Finch, who said after his team’s Game 1 defeat that they needed to be better in clutch moments, pointed to the two crucial turnovers in the final minute.
He said that 22-year-old rising star Edwards needed to “pick up his decision-making”, but shrugged off the suggestion he needed more minutes of rest.
“Maybe we should have gotten him out at the beginning of the fourth, but it’s the Western Conference Finals,” he said.
“You can’t look to hide people or try to take breaks. I don’t see Kyrie shying away from a matchup out there.” REUTERS, AFP
