Mavericks 124 - 103 Timberwolves live online: stats, scores and highlights | NBA Western Conference Finals Game 5
Luka was named MVP of the Western Conference Finals after scoring 36 points, grabbing 10 rebounds and 5 assists. He and the Mavs will take on the Boston Celtics in the NBA Finals. Game 1 from TD Garden is set for Thursday, June 6th.
You can just see how much this means to Luka Doncic after Kyrie hit this three ball in the 4th quarter. Kyrie, who had 36 points in the close out game from Minnesota, has been to the Finals and won it all before, but Luka will be making his first appearance.
There is going to be a lot of chatter about who has the best back court in the NBA Finals. Is it Boston with Jayson Tatum and Jaylen Brown, or is it Dallas with Luka and Kyrie? Luckily we will have a seven game series to find out.
The Wolves showed no signs of trying to get back in the game after getting embarrassed by the Mavs in the first half. Doncic hit PJ Washington with a half court alley oop to start the third quarter, and that set the tone for the rest of the night.
Doncic started to relax a little after putting up 20 in the first, heading to halftime with 25 as the Mavs lead crept up to 29 before the break.
Kyrie took over in the second quarter as Luka came out of the break on the bench. He showed how potent of a one two punch they can be and how difficult it can be to stop this team when both are in the zone.
This team is getting healthy at the right time. In Game 4, the Mavs got Maxi Kleber back, and will have him back at full strength for the NBA Finals against the Celtics.
Luka just started throwing stuff up when he began to feel it in the first quarter. He had 20 points at the end of the first quarter, and the Mavs went on a 17-1 run to take control of the game and not look back.
You got the feeling that Luka had something special in store on Thursday from the Target Center. I’m not going to say he had any other motivation other than closing out the series, but Luka’s favorite soccer team plays on Saturday night, and he wasn’t going to want to be preoccupied with Game 6 when Madrid plays Dortmund in the Champions League Final on Saturday night.
The Dallas Mavericks made no mistakes in Game 5 from Minnesota after giving the Timberwolves a sliver of hope on Tuesday night from American Airlines Center. The Dallas duo ensured the Mavs would not complicate the series any more than needed, scoring 36 points a piece in the 124-103 Win.
Doncic wasted no time igniting in front of a rabid Target Center. He came out and hit his first 5 field goals, and had the Mavs offense rolling early on.
THE DALLAS MAVERICKS ARE HEADING BACK TO THE NBA FINALS FOR THE FIRST TIME SINCE 2011 AFTER BLOWING OUT MINNESOTA IN GAME 5 OF THE WESTERN CONFERENCE FINALS!
Moore hits the three ball from the wing and that's going to do it from Minnesota.
Lawson to the line after the foul on Moore and he hits one of two FTs.
Moore steps back and hits the jumper from the paint.
Exum lobs it up and finds Powell for the alley oop slam.
Garza gets a turn around jumper to fall in the lane.
Hardy hits the pull up from the elbow.
Hardy goes to the rack and finishes with the lay up.
Garza down low and he gets the lay up to fall.
Doncic with the dump down to Lively for the slam and the Wolves are going to call a timeout to take their starters out with 3:02 to go.
Irving draws the defense and finds Lively over the top for the jam.
Towns to the line after the foul on Doncic and he hits both FTs.
Reid with a drop step on the block and uses the glass to drop in down.
Irving burns past a defender and he lays it up and in.
McDaniels in the corner and he hits the three ball off the kick out from Reid.
Doncic into the game and back on the board with a three ball from the top of the key off the glass! He's got 36 on the night!
Edwards soaring to the lane and he finishes with the finger roll.
Edwards going to the bucket and he gets the lay up to fall and the foul on Jones. FT is good.
Irving hits another step back three ball and he's got 34 on the night.
Anderson gets the roll on a short jumper in the lane.
Gafford to the line and hits both FTs.
Irving follows the miss from Washington and tips it up and in.
TImeout MIN with 9:36 to go in the 4th quarter.
Washington lays it off for Gafford who absorbs the contact and lays it up off the glass.
Edwards pull up from the elbow and he's got 23 tonight.
Anderson in the corner for three off the kick out from Edwards.
Jones starts the quarter with a drive at Gobert and a finish in the lane.
WE ARE HEADED TO THE FOURTH QUARTER WITH THE MAVS UP 24!
Doncic gets into the land and hits the floater with a defender on his back. He's got 33 already.
KAT slashes to the bucket and lays it up and in over Kleber.
KAT to the line after the foul on Kleber and he hits both FTs.
Hardy knocks down the three ball from the wing off another dish from Lively.
Reid goes to the bucket and lays it up and in with the foul on Irving. FT is good to complete the three point play.
LIvely finds Irving wide open from the wing and he drills it to end the mini run that got the Target Center back into this game.
KAT goes into the body of Irving and lays it up and in on the break.
Towns strokes the three ball from the wing and let's see if that sparks a little comeback from MIN.
KAT to the line after he hits one of two FTs after the foul on Lively.
Irving off the dribble and he hits the pull up from a step behind the FT line.
Edwards pulls up from the top of the key and he hits the three ball again!
Timeout Dallas with 5:41 to go in the 3rd quarter.
Edwards with another three ball and he's starting to heat up, but it's a little too late for that.
Irving steps back from long range, and drills the three ball!
KAT battling on the boards and gets the put back to go.
Irving steps back from the baseline and hits the mid range jumper.
Edwards with a three ball of his own, but the lead is still 30.
McDaniels drills a three ball from the top of the key and that's only the third triple of the night for MIN.
Luka gets his defender in the air, gets the bucket to fall and the foul on McDaniels. FT is no good.
Washington drills a three ball from the wing after the extra pass from Jones.
KAT to the line after the foul on Gafford and he hits both FTs.
Gafford to the line after the foul on Gobert and he hits both FTs.
McDaniels hits the elbow jumper out of the timeout.
Doncic eases down the lane and floats it up and in over Gobert.
Timeout Wolves with 10:37 to go in the 3rd quarter.
Doncic to the line after the foul on Edwards and he hits both FTs.
Gobert down low and he gets the lay up to fall after the dump off fro Conley.
Doncic over the top and he finds Washtington for the alley oop slam!
WE ARE BACK IN MINNESOTA FOR THE SECOND HALF OF ACTION!
Luka has 25 points at the half, and the Mavs lead by 29 heading into the third quarter. Ladies and gentlemen, I think we can call in a night, and call it a series.
Kyrie took over with Luka cooling down on the bench and ended the opening half with 19 points and 3 assists.
It was 18-18 at one point, but the Mavs went on a huge run to end the first quarter and took control from there on out.
Just sit back and enjoy the Luka show. The Mavs came into the game wanting to close this series out as soon as possible and Luka is making sure they take care of buisness tonight.
WE ARE HEADING TO HALFTIME AND THE MAVS HAVE RUN AWAY WITH THIS GAME!
Irving to the line after the foul on Edwards and he hits both FTs.
Anderson in the corner and he finally sees something fall, although his foot was on the line.
Irving pulls the trigger from the wing and sinks the three ball!
Kickout from Jones to Luka and he strokes the three ball! He's got 25 on the night!
Irving into the paint and he fades away from traffic for the short jumper.
After review the foul is deemed to be a flagrant one, and LIvely is back in the game to shoot the FTs. He hits one of two still shaking off the pain.
LIvely just took another shot to the head and he is down and not getting up. Remember missed last game with a neck strain, and now just took a shot from Reid.
Edwards to the line after the foul on Jones and he hits both FTs.
Kyrie using the bank from the wing a step inside the three point line and he gets it to go. He's got 8 in the quarter.
Irving weaving through the lane and he kicks it out to Washington in the corner for the three ball!
Lively to the line after the foul on Anderson and he hits one of two FTs.
Edwards goes to the rack out of the timeout and lays it up and in.
Timeout Wolves with 5:18 to go in the 2nd quarter.
KAT driving through traffic and he gets the lay up to fall.
Doncic running the break and he kicks it out to Jones in the corner for three!
KAT to the line after the foul on Lively and he hits both FTs.
Lively to the line after the foul on Conley and he hits one of two FTs.
KAT uses the bank with a little runner in the lane.
Doncic back on the court and back on the board. He hits the little push shot from outside the lane.
KAT soars and splits a couple defenders for the lay up.
Edwards with a nasty cross over and he hits the three ball from the wing. If MIN is going to get back in the game, he's going to need to step up now.
Irving hangs it high off the glass after slashing through the lane and he beats the buzzer.
Irving to the line after the foul on Alexander-Walker and he hits both FTs.
Conley to the line after the foul on Exum and he hits both FTs.
Green driving and he gets another easy bucket at the rack. Everything is easy for DAL and nothing is coming easy for MIN.
Conley with a tough floater from the left side of the lane in traffic.
Kleber drops a three ball from the wing and that's his first three since returning from a lengthy injury! 22-1 run from DAL.
Irving starts the quarter with a step back jumper from the baseline.
Irving beats the buzzer with a drive and finish over Reid and that's going to bring us to the end of the first quarter!
Luka has 20 in the first quarter, as the Mavs went on a 17-1 run to end the opening 12 minutes. Gobert leads the Wolves with 7, ANT has 5, and KAT has 4.
Gafford caught it off the back board from Doncic and goes up and slams it.
Edwards to the line after the foul on Gafford and he hits one of two FTs.
Gafford fouled by Reid on the lay up attempt in transition and he hits one of two FTs.
Doncic with a heat check pull up from the top of the key and he drills it again! 12-0 run and he's got 20 in the first quarter with 2:23 to go in the first quarter!
Doncic pulls the trigger from the T'Wolves logo and drills it! He's got 17 an the Mavs are on a 9-0 run.
Doncic gets the mid range jumper to go and he's got 14 already.
Great bounce pass from Green to Washington from the half court line and he hit him in stride for the transition jam.
Doncic lobs it up down the lane and he finds LIvely on another one of those patented dunks
Gobert going to work down low, and he gets the bucket AND 1!!!FT is good after the foul on Lively.
Kyrie stops on a dime and hits it from the elbow.
Conley drills a three ball from the corner off the extra pass from KAT.
Doncic got stripped and Edwards ran the break taking it right at Kyrie, getting the lay up and the foul! FT is no good.
Jones just stuffed Gobert at the rim and there was a bit of afters between the two and both got T'd up .
Timeout with 7:03 to go, and it's been fun so far.
Gobert backing down Doncic, and he gets the bucket to go AND 1! FT is no good.
Doncic into the lane and he goes up and under. He's 5/5 from the field to start the night.
KAT with another tip in around the rim and he's come out aggressive to start the night.
Washington to the FT line and he hits both after the foul on McDaniels.
Doncic pull up and strokes it from the elbow! He's in double digits already.
Edwards picks up the offensive board and throws it down with a jam.
Doncic with another deep ball from the corner, and someone came to play tonight!
Gafford grabs the offensive board and puts it back from down low.
Luka drops a deep three ball from the wing, and he's got the first five points of the night for DAL.
Gobert catches it on the fly from Conley and drives to the lane for a lay up.
Doncic with a floater that didn't' get over Gobert, but he got it on the way down and was called for a goaltend.
KAT banging on the boards and gets the put back to go underneath. He needs to be aggressive from the start, and that's a great start.
WE ARE UNDERWAY FROM MINNESOTA!!!
Mavs starters
It worked for the first three games, so why would Jason Kidd stray away now? It's Kyrie and Luka leading the way with PJ Washington, Derek Jones Jr. and Daniel Gafford. The Mavs have a chance to do something they haven't done in over a decade. Can they close it out tonight? Or are we going back to Dallas for Game 6?
Mavs starters
In a must win game, Chris Finch is going with his big guns. Anthony Edwards is going to lead the show, as always but he's going to need help from everyone, especially Karl-Anthony Towns. Mike Conley is going to provide his veteran experience while Rudy Gobert and Jaden McDaniels are going to be doing it on both sides of the court.
Dreary history of the 3-0 deficit
We all know the story. The Mavs know. The Wolves know. The fans tuning in tonight know. When NBA teams go down 3-0 in a series, you might as well bury them then and there. While technically it’s not impossible, statistics would say otherwise. In the history of the league, 155 teams have gone up 3-0 and 154 teams have won the series. It’s going to happen one of these days, and Minnesota has to be thinking that if they are going to have any chance at surviving. Perhaps they can take stock in some of the more miraculous comebacks in NHL or MLB history. It doesn’t happen all the time, but other sports have shown us it’s possible.
Lively feeling fine
When going up against the Minnesota Timberwolves you need as much size as you can get to combat their length, speed and tenacity. Derek Lively provides that in a big way, but unfortunately for Dallas he was unavailable for the Mavs last game after suffering a sprained neck following a collision with KAT’s knee early in the Game 3 win over the Wolves. He still had a sore neck last game, and sat o Tuesday night. He came into the day listed as questionable, but tonight the explosive rookie is ready to go.
Wolves need their KAT
If the Timberwolves had got swept in Dallas on Tuesday night, Karl-Anthony Towns would have had a lot of questions to answer. Before Game 4, he was just 3/22 from downtown and was really struggling with his shot in the first three matches of the series. ANT Man has repeatedly calledhim the best offensive player on the team, but consistency has evaded him from time to time. Last game he went 4/5 from downtown and 9/13 from the field. He didn’t just settle for jumpers, he drove to the bucket, using his size and strength against this undersized Mavs team. While he had a big game on Tuesday, that’s not going to mean much if the Wolves get knocked out tonight. He has to bring it like he brought it in Game 4 if the home side is going to have any chance at victory tonight.
ANT Man the key
With he weight of the world on his back, and his team facing elimination Anthony Edwards came through in the clutch and delivered his best game of the series. We said it last game and we can repeat it before tonight’s game. This dude is a bonafide superstar and at just 22 years old he takes the on the burden of carrying his team and injecting a certain amount of swag that this team is going to need if they are going to be the first team to ever come back from a 3-0 deficit in the NBA Playoffs. We are getting a little too comfortable comparing him to some of he legends of the game like Dwayne Wade, or even Michael Jordan, but if he can lead his team to the miracle comeback, then it would mean he did something that neither of those two did in their incredible careers. Edwards will no doubt be fueled by the fans at Target Center, and he has shown that no moment is too big for him.
Can Dallas Duo deliver?
The Dallas Mavericks duo looked like they had put their dip during the Thunder series behind them for the first three games against the Wolves. Last game, their shots weren’t going down. They didn’t necessarily play bad, but they weren’t as efficient as they were in other games this series. Luka had a 28 point triple double and Irving had 16 and 4 assists, but it’s a significant drop from their 59.5 points they averaged in the regular season and 50 combined points they are getting in the playoffs. Luka and Irving both tried to put the loss on their backs, but will get a chance at redemption tonight. Game 4 was the first close out game that Kyrie Irving has ever lost in his career, going 14-0 before Tuesday’s loss. He will no doubt have that in the back of his mind tonight as he tries to close out the Wolves on the road.
Game 4 recap
When they needed it most, the Minnesota Timberwolves got a huge performance from Karl-Anthony Towns. After he and the Wolves fell just short in all three of the first games of the series, KAT delivered and the Wolves followed. Minnesota climbed out to a 12 point first quarter lead thanks to Anthony Edwards’ 14 points in the opening 12 minutes. Dallas would claw back and tie the game at halftime before both teams went back and forth for the final two quarters. Kyrie and Luka had been great in all three games leading up to Tuesday’s loss, but they fell short in the close out game and both took their part of the blame after going a combined 13/39 from the floor. While Doncic and Irving didn’t produce the goods, KAT did. He hit three huge triples late in the game in route to a 25 point night and Anthony Edwards has 29, 10 and 9 assists in the 105-100 Game 4 win.
We are live from Target Center
Hello everyone and welcome to Minnesota where the Timberwolves are trying to do something that has never been done in the history of the NBA, but before they do that they have to get a win in Game 5 from the Target Center. After digging themselves a 3-0 hole in three tight games that went down to the wire, the Timberwolves put the pieces to in a must win situation to keep their season going for at least another game. The Dallas Mavericks have another chance to close out the series tonight in a place where they won the first two games of the WCF. Tonight will be a bit of a different story. The Wolves have some momentum, they are back home, and they have their fans ready to push them to another win, and force Game 6 back in Dallas on Saturday night.
Mavs vs. Wolves Game 5
For a second straight game we have an elimination situation in the Western Conference Finals. In Game 4 it was Minnesota clinging to life with a late win in Dallas, and tonight the Timberwolves will look to stay alive and extend the series for another game against the Mavericks from the Target Center. AS English will be with you all night providing live coverage, stats, highlights and analysis of tonight’s Game 4.