DALLAS — There were plenty of opportunities for the Dallas Mavericks to put their stamp on Game 3 and get back into the Western Conference finals.
But it was Andrew Wiggins’ poster on Luka Doncic that punctuated another Golden State Warriors win, 109-100, Sunday night at American Airlines Center. The Warriors have a 3-0 series lead and eyes firmly on their sixth NBA Finals trip in eight seasons.
Doncic did his best to keep the Mavericks in it, including hitting an incredible 32-foot buzzer-beater to end the first quarter, punctuated by a shimmy reminiscent of Stephen Curry. Doncic had 10 points in the first period as the Warriors held a three-point lead.
Doncic couldn’t get the help he needed, again, as the Mavericks shot just 40% from the field and 28.9% from 3-point range. He finished with 40 points, his eighth 40-point game in the playoffs, a Mavericks record.
Dorian Finney-Smith, Reggie Bullock and Dwight Powell combined for just 12 points. Bullock shot 0-for-10 from the field.
Spencer Dinwiddie, coming off a four-point outing in Game 2, was the Mavericks’ second-leading scorer with 26 off the bench.
The Warriors were unfazed by their own shooting woes. The long ball wasn’t falling for either team and Golden State shot 34.4%. They made up for it on the boards with an 47-33 advantage.
Curry led Golden State with 31 points, while Wiggins had 27.
Otto Porter Jr., one of the Warriors’ key contributors, sustained another foot injury in the first half that needed X-rays. He was ruled out after halftime with left foot soreness.
Golden State took a one-point lead at halftime, but Dallas couldn’t capitalize with another disastrous third quarter.
Game 4 is 9 p.m. ET Tuesday on TNT.
