In a game that felt more like a relay race than a basketball match, Luka Doncic and Kyrie Irving led the Dallas Mavericks to a thrilling 108-105 victory over the Minnesota Timberwolves in Game 1 of the Western Conference finals on Wednesday night in Minneapolis.
Kyrie Irving ignited the Mavericks’ offense with a scorching 24-point first half, keeping Dallas within striking distance. Luka Doncic then took over in the second half, scoring 15 of his 33 points in the fourth quarter to secure the win.
“Amazing,” Doncic said of his teammate. “(Kyrie) got us going. Without him, we’d probably be down 20 at halftime, so he got us going. So I had to help him in the second half a little bit.”
Irving finished with 30 points on 12-for-23 shooting. Daniel Gafford narrowly missed a double-double with 10 points and nine rebounds, while rookie Dereck Lively II contributed nine points and 11 rebounds.
Jaden McDaniels led the Timberwolves with 24 points, making six of nine attempts from beyond the arc. Anthony Edwards posted 19 points, 11 rebounds, and eight assists, while Karl-Anthony Towns added 16 points.
The Mavericks, shooting 49.4 percent (43 for 87) from the field, outscored Minnesota 26-22 in the decisive fourth quarter. Despite leading 83-82 at the end of the third, the Timberwolves couldn’t maintain their energy.
“Yeah, for sure,” Edwards said when asked if the team’s Game 7 win over the Denver Nuggets in the conference semifinals had drained them. “You all can see it. We were a step behind everybody, especially myself. Kyrie got a transition layup… and he just outran me. I was just exhausted. So yeah, for sure. But we’ll be all right.”
Dallas seized control with a 13-0 run, grabbing a 97-89 lead with 7:38 left in the game. Doncic spearheaded the run with seven straight points and capped it with a pair of free throws.
Minnesota fought back with a 10-1 run to take a 99-98 lead with 4:39 remaining, highlighted by Towns’ 28-foot three-pointer. Edwards extended the lead to 102-98 with a three-pointer at 3:37.
However, Dallas responded with back-to-back threes from Doncic and P.J. Washington to regain a 104-102 lead with 1:56 left. Doncic then hit a step-back jumper to extend the lead to 106-102 with 49.2 seconds to play, and the Mavericks held on from there.
The Timberwolves led 62-59 at halftime, buoyed by McDaniels’ 19 first-half points, a career playoff high for him. In the closing minute of the half, Irving scored five quick points, including a three-point play with 0.7 seconds left, pulling Dallas within three.
The series will continue with Game 2 on Friday night.
“That’s only one,” Doncic said. “We’ve got three more to go.”
