DALLAS (AP) — Luka Doncic once again struggled with his shot due to a sore right knee, and Kyrie Irving spent a lot of energy on defense.
Meanwhile, the Mavericks co-stars teamed up in a late surge to propel Dallas into the second round of the postseason for the first time.
Doncic had 28 points and 13 assists, Irving scored 28 of his 30 points after halftime, and the Mavericks cruised to a 114-101 victory over the Los Angeles Clippers on Friday night.
This time, with Irving in tow, Doncic accomplished what the Slovenian superstar couldn't do three years ago — shut out the Clippers in Dallas in Game 6 of the first round of their playoff series.
The fifth-seeded Mavericks defeated the Clippers in three tries in the first round for the first time in the past five seasons and will open the Western Conference semifinals against top-seeded Oklahoma City on Tuesday night.
“We push each other off the court to get better, and when we get on the court, it's just like synchronicity,” Irving said. “It feels good.”
Paul George had 18 points and 11 rebounds for the Clippers, who won the first two games of the series without Kawhi Leonard, but had enough in the last two games when he missed the series with inflammation in his right knee. I couldn't show my scoring ability.
James Harden had 16 points and 13 assists, but was just 5-of-16 from the field and missed all six of his 3-pointers, and despite making 10 trades early in the season, Los Angeles It was the second consecutive year they lost in the first round. All Star.
“There's a lot of emotions and things going through my head right now,” Harden said.
Irving, who was added at last year's trade deadline in hopes of helping the Mavs make a nascent playoff run, spent much of his time guarding Harden in the first half, when he scored two points on just six shots.
The eight-time All-Star opened the second half with a layup to break a 52-52 tie, then hit a 3-pointer from Doncic, who was 0-for-7 from deep in the first half. After Dallas lost a 13-point advantage in the second quarter following an LA turnover, Irving hit a 3 to take an eight-point lead.
The Mavs outscored the Clippers 35-20 in the third quarter, the same quarter they had a chance to win in Game 5 in Los Angeles, and extended their lead to 20 points early in the fourth.
Irving gave Dallas its biggest lead with a flashy four-point play, taking a slanted 3-pointer off P.J. Tucker and making the free throw for a 106-82 lead.
The Clippers responded with an 11-2 run to get within 13 points, but made a big comeback in the final minutes as George, Harden and Ivica Zubac each played at least 22 minutes in the first half to get LA back into the game. There was no real threat of reversal.
“It was in the third and fourth quarter that we caught up,” coach Tyronn Lue said. “I just ran out of gas.”
Doncic, who was plagued by knee pain and illness, was 9-of-26 from the field, 9-of-11 from free throws, and just 1-of-10 from 3-point range. Ta. Irving was 10 of 13 from the field after halftime.
“It's terrible, dude. I need some rest,” Doncic said before walking away from a TV interview and going on a three-day vacation.
Now, Doncic can at least match his long playoff run two years ago, when Dallas stunned Phoenix in Game 7 of the West Regional semifinals with a blowout loss and lost to eventual champion Golden State in five games in the West Regional finals. I would aim to do that.
For the Clippers, Norman Powell scored 20 points and Zubac had 17 points and 11 rebounds.
For the Mavs, P.J. Washington made some big 3-pointers, including 4 of 8 from deep, and scored 14 points, while Daniel Gafford had 13 points, making some hard shots from deep. was recorded.
“When you look at the culture of our team, they're very important,” Dallas coach Jason Kidd said of the Mavs' two trade deadline acquisitions. “Our defense has changed since they came here. They're not going to complain. We don't have to make plays for them.”
Dallas' Maxi Kleber did not return because he sprained his right shoulder in a hard fall on a blocking foul on a drive against Amir Coffey in the first minute of the second quarter.
Kleber, whose 3-point shooting gave Dallas momentum in this series, went back to shooting free throws, made 1 of 2, and was ejected on the next dead ball.
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