Luka Doncic and Kyrie Irving combined for 66 points to lead the Dallas Mavericks to a 116-107 victory over the Minnesota Timberwolves, giving them a commanding 3-0 lead in the Western Conference finals.
Doncic and Irving each scored 33 points, orchestrating a decisive 14-3 run in the final five minutes of the game.
P.J. Washington Jr. put Dallas ahead for good with a tiebreaking corner three-pointer with 3:38 remaining.
Doncic hit a shot in the lane for a four-point lead, and Irving followed with a falling-down jumper to energize the crowd.
Doncic then assisted Daniel Gafford on an alley-oop dunk, extending the lead to 113-105 with 34 seconds left.
Gafford also made a crucial block on Mike Conley’s layup attempt just before his dunk.
Anthony Edwards led the Timberwolves with 26 points but struggled in the fourth quarter, scoring only four points.
Karl-Anthony Towns added 14 points but missed all eight of his three-point attempts, including a crucial one with 1:25 remaining.
The Timberwolves, who led by 18 points in the first half, faltered in the final moments, missing seven consecutive shots after taking a 104-102 lead with five minutes left.
Doncic was 10 of 20 from the field and 5 of 11 from deep, while Irving scored 14 points in the fourth quarter, finishing 12 of 20 and 3 of 6 from long range.
The Mavericks are now one win away from their first NBA Finals appearance in 13 years.
