NBA Western Conference finals
No. 3 Timberwolves vs. No. 5 Dallas
(Mavericks lead best-of-seven series 2-0)
Game 3: Sunday, 7 p.m., American Airlines Center, Dallas
TV, radio: TNT/TruTV, 100.3 FM, iHeartRadio app
Stats and analysis: Tap here.
Opening bell: First-team All-NBA selection Luka Doncic delivered not only a 32-point, 13-assist, 10-rebound triple-double but also the comeback game-winner on a stepback three over outstretched big Rudy Gobert with three seconds left in Friday’s Game 2. “When he got to dancing with Gobert, you could see the stepback was coming,” Mavs coach Jason Kidd said afterward. “And the rest was history.” The NBA’s Sixth Man of the Year, Wolves center Naz Reid, had made seven of eight three-pointers, but his ninth attempt missed as time ran out. “I wasn’t thinking. I almost passed out,” Doncic said. “That was looking good, too good.”
Players to watch: Daniel Gafford and Dereck Lively II, Mavericks. While Wolves stars Karl-Anthony Towns and Anthony Edwards shot a combined 9-for-33, including 3-for-12 on threes, the two Mavs centers shot nearly 90% from the field, combined for 30 points and didn’t attempt a single three. Starter Gafford was 8-for-10 with five blocks, backup Lively a perfect 6-for-6. “That’s a good tandem,” Kidd said. “Our bigs were really big tonight.”
Injuries: Doncic (right knee sprain, left ankle soreness) and Wolves G Mike Conley (right calf strain) are again listed as questionable, as they have been regularly.
