Mavericks 104 - 92 Thunder summary, stats, scores and highlights | NBA Playoffs Game 5

Luka was magic, but Jones' 19 and 10 were key for the Mavs on Wednesday night. This block and then slam on the other end sealed the deal as the two best Dallas players on the floor in Game 5 connected to wrap up the road win. 

The Mavericks will take a 3-2 series lead back home and have a chance to close out the series at the American Airlines. The winner of Game 5 in a 2-2 series goes on to advance 80% of the time, and that's what the Mavs will try to do on Saturday at 8 pm ET. 

With the lead down to single digits, Washington actually hit the side of the backboard on this three point attempt but got his own rebound and slammed it home to keep the lead above 10. 

When everything is clicking for Luka, he makes it look easy. There was no one that was slowing him down in Game 5. Not Lu Dort, not Holmgren, not Willams. He had 31 points, 10 rebounds and 11 assists on a night that he notably didn't get into it with the refs too much. 

PJ Washington had been carrying the Mavs in the previous three games, but in Game 5 he got a break from the heavy lifting. He had a productive night with 10 points and 10 rebounds  while getting some big, timely bucket when the game was tight. 

Kyrie has just 12 points and 4 assists, but he didn't have to be great with Luka playing the way he did and the rest of the team stepping up. 

Luka was in his zone in Game 5. He commanded the pace, got his teammates involved and dropped this dime to Derek Lively who had a nice night off the bench with 11 and 10 rebounds. 

Dereck Jones stepped up and had a big night, going 6/6 in the first half and finishing the night with 19 points. He ended the game 7/9 from the field, but none were easier than this alley oop from Luka. 

Luka Doncic has had a rough series. It's largely attributed to his injured knees and ankle, but in Game 5 he looked as mobile as he has been all postseason. When he's making shots like this, the other team is in trouble. 

The Dallas Mavericks are headed back home with a 3-2 lead in the Western Conference Semis after taking down the Oklahoma City Thunder after a series swinging win on Wednesday night. Luka Doncic had a triple double, and his best game of this round in the 104-92 victory. 

After back to back off night, Doncic and Kyrie Irving knew they were going to have to come out and be aggressive early on. Kyrie get things going early on, but Luka would take the keys to the car for the rest of the night. 

IT'S ALL OVER!!!

The Mavs come out of OKC with a huge win to take control of the series and will have a chance to close it out at home. 

Lively back to the line and he hits one of two FTs. 

Lively to the line after the foul on SGA and he hits both FTs. 

Giddey on the baseline and he gets the pass from SGA before the lay up. 

Timeout Thunder with 50 seconds to go.

Jones to the line and he hits both FTs. 

Holmgren on the tip slam off the missed three from Joe. 

SGA to the elbow and that mid range jumper falls. 

Jones blocks Holmgren and Doncic hits Jones on the break for the slam!

Lively to the line after the foul on Williams and he hits both FTs. 

The call stands and SGA hits one of two FTs. 

Doncic was called for a foul on SGA, and the Mavs are going to challenge the call with 3:46 to go in the 4th. 

Washington's three went off the side of the backboard but he followed it up and slammed it home. 

Williams drives and pulls up with a leaner from outside the lane. 

Doncic finds Washington in the corner and he nails a huge three ball!

Holmgren stretches to the iron and throws it down off the dribble!

Gafford fouled by SGA and he hits one of two FTs. 

Williams drives down the lane and gets the scoop lay up to fall. 

Dort beats the buzzer with a deep three ball from the wing and the Thunder are on an 8-0 run. 

Timeout Dallas with 6:49 to go in the 4th. 

Dort with the baseline drive and he dumps it off for Holmgren for the slam. 

SGA with a step back three over Lively and he needed to see that go down. 

Irving taps it back to Doncic off the rebound and he steps into a three ball from the top of th key! 

Timeout Thunder with 9:30 to go in the 4th. 

Luka dribbles into the paint and hits the one handed floater. 

Williams to the rack and he lays it high off teh glass over traffic. 

Doncic with the runner and gets the foul on Dort. FT is good. 

Give and go from Wiggins to Williams and he lays it up off the glass. 

Hardaway starts the quarter with a floater in the lane off the dish from Doncic. 

WE ARE HEADED TO THE FOURTH QUARTER WITH THE MAVS UP BY 12!

Luka calms the crown down with his patented step back three ball from the wing. 

SGA on the runner, got the bump and the bucket! FT is good. 

Hardy tosses it up and Lively is there for the alley oop slam. How many of those have the Mavs had tonight????

Wiggins with the steal and goes right at Lively on the break, finishing high off the glass. 

SGA finds Giddey on the baseline and he hits the runner from outside the lane. 

Gafford hands it off to Kyrie at the top of the key and he sticks the three ball!

Wallace off the bench and hits his first bucket of the night from downtown!

Timeout Mavericks with 3:28 to go in the 3rd quarter. 

SGA fouled by Lively and he hits one of two FTs. 

Green in the corner off the kick out from Kyrie and he drills the long ball. 

Giddey cuts down the baseline and lays it up and in off the dish from SGA. 

Washington called for a defensive three seconds and SGA hits the FT. 

Lively with the offensive board and kicked it out to Doncic at the top of the key for three!

SGA works his way into the paint and fades away with the mid range. 

Green with another dish to Washington, this time in the corner for three!

Timeout Thunder with 6:44 to go in the 3rd quarter.

SGA slithers down the lane and lays it up and in off the glass. 

Green slaps out the offensive board and Washington caught it on the fly for the slam down the lane!

Extra pass from Jones to Gafford in the paint and he lays it up and in. 

Washington got the rebound, but turned it over and SGA goes right tot he basket for the lay up. 

Irving puts his head down and gets to the rim for a finger roll. 

SGA was left wide open from long range and he hits it from the wing!

Gafford on the jump hook in the lane to get the third quarter. 

WE ARE BACK IN OKC FOR THE SECOND HALF OF ACTION!

Luka is feeling it tonight. He's 7/11 from the field after going 6/20 in Game 4. He's got 17, 6 and 7 assists on the night. 

Dort has 9 on the night and is the second leading scorer for the Thunder while trying to contain Luka. 

Luka's got 7 assists already, but I can guarantee this will be his longest one. 

The Mavs shot 56% from the field and a lot of their made buckets came off alley oop plays lik this one to Jones. 

SGA had a quiet first half, but got going late in the second quarter. He's got 10 at half, but he is going to come out of the break swinging. 

When Luka's hitting shots like this, watch out. He's been feeling it tonight, and he's not just playing well, he's moving well. He's got 17, 7 and 6 at the half time break. 

Both Kyrie and Luka needed to get going early after a couple of off nights, and both made sure to attack right out of the gate. Kyrie's got 7, but usually saves his best for the second half. 

WE ARE AT HALFTIME HERE FROM OKC WITH DALLAS LEADING BY 10! 

Green gets his own board and lays it up and in off the double clutch. 

Williams goes right at Gafford, cocks it back and throws it down on the Dallas big man. 

Joe bangs home a three and the Thunder are looking to make a late 2nd quarter run before the break. 

Tough shot from Doncic from a tight angle and he banks it home from outside the lane. 

SGA with a step back from the baseline and he's starting to get hot. 

SGA strips Luka and takes it for the score after the steal. 

Doncic pull up in the face of Williams and he drills another three ball! Mavs have their largest lead of the night and Doncic has 15. 

Dort to the line after the foul on Gafford and he hits both FTs. 

Gafford backing down Holmgren and he finishes off the glass. 

Timeout Mavericks with 4:07 to go in the second quarter. 

Washington finds Jones in the corner and he hits another triple try!

Another lob from Luka and another alley oop jam, this time for Washington. 

SGA takes Gafford off the dribble and hits the lay up with Gafford on his back. 

Holmgren with four straight points after a getting the roll on the floater in traffic. 

Holmgren to the line after the foul on Jones and he hits both FTs. 

Jones hits Doncic on a long outlet pass for the lay up on the break. 

Irving spots up from the corner and drops a three over the defender. 10-0 run for Dallas. 

Doncic drops a dime from three quarters court and finds Lively for another alley oop!

Timeout Thunder with 9:11 to go in the first half. 

Luka down the lane and he got his floater blocked by Holmgren but on the way down. 

Washington with the extra pass to Hardaway in the corner and he responds with a three ball. 

Giddey was left alone in the corner and he drills it off the kick out from Williams. 

Doncic penetrating again and he lobs it up for Lively for the alley oop.

Dort driving down the lane, fakes the pass and lays it up and in. 

Irving step into the lane and fades away for the short jumper. 

WE ARE AT THE END OF THE FIRST QUARTER AND THE MAVERICKS LEAD BY 2!

Jones leads all scorers with 10, and Luka has 8. Dort is the leading scorer for the Thunder with 5. 

SGA gets to his spot and hits the elbow jumper. 

Hardy lobs it up for Gafford who throws it down on the alley oop slam. 

Jay. Williams drills a three ball from the top of the key and the Mavs will tak a timeout with 2:31 to go in the first half. 

Doncic leading the break and he leaves it up for Jones who skies for the alley oop slam! He's got 10 points already!

Dort penetrates and dumps it down to Giddey with a floater from outside the lane. 

Hardy goes behind the back in the paint and hits the fader over Giddey. 

Doncic to the line after the foul on Williams and he hits one of two FTs. 

Williams with the rebound on one end, and found Dort jetting to the bucket on the break for the slam. 

Doncic on the step back three ball from the wing out of the timeout, and he's come out hot. 

Dort answers back with a three ball from the wing. 

Timeout Thunder with under 6:00 to go in the 1st quarter. 

Jones was wide open on the perimeter and he knocks the three down from the top of the key. 

Williams pulls up from the wing and ends the 9-0 Mavs run with a mid range jumper. 

Luka felt the contact and hit the off balanced jumper with one had from 20 feet! 

Jones gets the pocket pass from Irving and finishes with the floater. 

Irving on the board in the opening minutes with the lefty floater high off the glass. 

Doncic kicks it out to Jones in the corner and he strokes the long ball. 

SGA turns on the jets and blows past his defender for the one handed slam down the lane. 

Joe sinks a three ball from the corner with a hand in his face!

Holmgren drills a three ball from straight on and the rookie is on the board early on. 

Doncic gets the night going with a fader from the lane on the break. 

GAME 5 IS UNDERWAY FROM DALLAS!!!

OKC starters

The Thunder are at home for the biggest game of the season and they have their top dogs ready to come out hot. It's SGA and Williams joined by Holmgren, Dort and Joe. Joe gets the start over Giddey tonight as OKC is perhaps putting a premium on defense. 

Mavs starters

No surprise that the Mavs are going with their Big Two that had become the Big Three for this pivotal Game 5 from OKC. It's Kyrie, Luka and Washington who will get them going out of the gate, but Luka and Kyrie can't let PJ be the best player on the court for Dallas. Gafford and Jones will be looking to bring the energy on both ends to help the Mavs pull another win out Paycom Center. 

A true team

I don't have a dog in this fight. As journalists we aren't supposed to want one team to win over another, but it's hard to root against this team. This a group of young dudes who love playing with each other, love practicing together and love winning together. One of the coolest things about this team is their post game interviews. In an era of super teams and super star egos, there is none of that on this Thunder squad. It's not something you see everyday, but this isn't just an everyday team. Something special is cooking in OKC, and 

Playoff PJ

It wasn’t too long ago that PJ Washington was most likely planning an early vacation after the regular season wrapped up. He was stuck in Charlotte, caught in the oblivion and that is the Hornets organization, but suddenly PJ Washington has gone from being a hidden gem on a terrible team to a valuable piece of a team looking for a place in the conference final. On a team with Luka Doncic and Kyrie Irving, he has led the Mavericks in three straight games averaging 25.6 points a game. He is in his first trip to the playoffs ever, and is thriving under the spotlight. In a perfect world, Luka and Kyrie would pick it up on the offense end while PJ continues to put up big numbers as the Mavs third option. 

Lu Dog

Lu Dort has been sensational in this series. He had the luxury of drawing the assignment on Luka Doncic, and has risen to the challenge. Last game he didn’t only lock down Luka, he chipped in 17 points and 8 rebounds on the offensive end. He has been described as the best on ball defender by some of the league’s biggest stars and Luka even put him in the top three defenders in the NBA at the beginning of this series. Going up against him is a scary proposition. Hell, passing by him when he comes into the arena would send a shiver down my spine. 

Feeling at Holm-gren

OKC needed each and every one of their 100 points to take down the Mavericks on Monday night. Shai Gilgeous-Alexaner had 34 of those 100 points, but he got plenty of help from his supporting cast, namely Chet Holmgren. The rookie may not have won Rookie of the Year, but he is still putting up big numbers in his debut season, and best of all, he’s doing so on a title contending team. Holmgren had to miss all of last year after suffering a lisfranc injury, but made his long awaited debut in OKC this season and it has been a dream fit. Holmgren averaged 16.5 points, and 7.9 rebounds in the regular season and is getting 15.3 and 8 rebounds during his first playoff run. He’s not just productive, the rookie is clutch. With the game tied and less than 4:00 on the clock, SGA kicked it out to Holmgren for the go ahead three that gave OKC the lead for the first time since the opening minutes of the game. 

Will the real Dallas Duo please stand up

Is OKC’s defense that good? Or are Luka and Kyrie going through a shooting slump at the worst imaginable time? It’s a little bit of both. Luka has been battered in this post season and the affects of the injury look to be taking their toll. Luka struggling seems to have had a trickle down effect on Irving. Kyrie is averaging 15 points in this series while Luka has yet to score 30 points in four games after averaging 33.9 points an outing during the regular season. The Dallas duo averaged 59 points combined in the regular season, and so far they are getting an average of 37 points a game in this series. Despite the struggles, the Mavs have still won two of the four games in this series. Can OKC keep Luka and Kyrie quiet for another game, or will the two stars shine when Dallas needs them the most. 

Game 4 recap

The Thunder knew it was win or bust in Game 4 from Dallas, but spent most of the game chasing the Mavericks from American Airlines Center. Even though Luka Doncic and Kyrie Irving struggled PJ Washington and Derick Jones Jr. carried the Mavs for the majority of the game, but Shai Gilgeous-Alexander took over and led his team to victory late in the fourth quarter. SGA went for 34, 8 and 5 assists and had three buckets in the Thunders 9-0 fourth quarter run that gave OKC the lead with 3:24 to go. It wasn’t just SGA, Chet Holmgren had 18 points and the go ahead three in the Thunder’s 9-0 run while Lu Dort had 17 points and 8 rebounds while keeping Doncic to 18 points on 6/20 shooting. Doncic had a chance to tie the game at the FT line but missed one of two and the Thunder hung on to even the series at 2-2. 

We are live from Paycom

Hello everyone and welcome to OKC where the top seeded Thunder return to their home court after getting a win on the road and tonight they will try to take the lead back in front of their fans in Game 5. After losing hold of their grip on home court advantage, the Thunder had some work to do on the road, and they took care of business in Game 4 from American Airlines Center. The Dallas Mavericks, on the other hand missed out on a big chance to take a two game lead on their home court and will now have to win at least one game in OKC if they are going to make a return trip to the Conference Finals. 

Mavs vs. Thunder Game 5

Massive matchup tonight from Oklahoma City. The Western Conference Semifinal is even at 2-2 after four games and someone will take control of the series and take a big step towards the next round of the playoffs in Game 5 from the Paycom Center. The Thunder are back home after coming up with a crucial win over the Dallas Maverick on Monday night and tonight they can take a step closer to the Conference Final with a win tonight. AS English will be with you all night providing live coverage, stats, highlights and analysis of tonight’s must see game from OKC.