The Dallas Mavericks defeated the Oklahoma City Thunder 104-92 on Wednesday night to grab a 3-2 lead in the Western Conference semifinal series. Luka Doncic scored 31 points while recording a triple-double.
Doncic, who finished first in the league in scoring during the regular season, had some difficulties in the series with Oklahoma City. Through the first four games, he had averaged just 22 points on 39% shooting while dealing with a damaged right knee and a sore left ankle. In Game 5, he finished with 11 assists, 10 rebounds, and 12 of his 22 field goals made, marking his sixth career playoff triple-double.
Dallas, which shot 52.6% from the field, was led by Derrick Jones Jr., who scored a playoff career-high 19 points, and P.J. Washington Jr., who added 10 points and 10 rebounds. If the No. 5 seeded Mavericks win at home on Saturday, they will go to the Western Conference finals.
No Oklahoma City player scored more than 13 points, with Shai Gilgeous-Alexander leading the top-seeded Thunder with 30 points.
Similar to their victory over the Los Angeles Clippers in the first round, the Mavericks prevailed in Game 5 away from home. Oklahoma City was limited to 42.5% shooting against Dallas.
Isaiah Joe started in place of Josh Giddey as Oklahoma City attempted to resurrect their flagging offense. For the first time in 229 total regular-season and postseason games, Giddey did not start.
Dallas took a 54-44 lead into halftime after leading by 15 points in the second quarter. Before the half, Jones scored fifteen points.
Dallas lead 79-67 despite Gilgeous-Alexander’s 14 points in the third quarter.
Before the Thunder took off, Dallas extended its advantage to 18 points in the first quarter of the fourth quarter. With less than seven minutes left, a 3-pointer by Gilgeous-Alexander reduced the score to 89-79, forcing Dallas to take a timeout. For the remainder of the game, the Thunder never got closer than seven points.
