The Dallas Mavericks defeated the Los Angeles Clippers 114-101 in Game 6 on Friday night to advance to the second round of the NBA Playoffs.
The two teams played even throughout the first half before the Mavericks put together multiple scoring runs to help them grow a sizeable lead in the second half and carry them to a series-clinching victory.
Mavericks guard Luka Doncic and forward PJ Washington opened the game hot, combining for 16 of the team’s first 20 points.
However, Clippers guard Paul George single-handedly kept Los Angeles in the game, scoring 10 of the team’s first 26 points.
Although the Mavericks were not shooting well in the first quarter, they picked up 10 offensive rebounds, which gave them extra opportunities to put the ball in the basket. This helped propel them to a 34-26 lead as they went into the game’s first break.
Doncic continued to attack the Clippers, accumulating 16 points by midway in the second quarter to help guide the Mavericks to a 44-32 lead.
However, neither team was shooting the ball well. The Clippers shot 35.7% from the field, while the Mavericks made 42.4% of their attempts.
The Mavericks stayed aggressive as Doncic threw an alley-oop layup to guard Josh Green to give Dallas a 46-33 lead with 6:11 remaining in the half.
Dallas quickly entered a scoring drought as the Clippers went on a 15-2 run to tie the game at 48 after guard Terance Mann made a driving layup with just 1:41 left in the quarter.
The two teams played even to end the game, entering halftime tied at 52. Both teams continued the series trend of poor shooting from behind the three-point line.
The Mavericks made just 25% of their 20 three-point attempts, while the Clippers shot just 28.6%, albeit making only 14 attempts in the half.
Dallas opened the second half, playing quicker than in the first. Guard Kyrie Irving made a fastbreak layup, followed by a Doncic three-point basket, to put the team up 57-52 in the first minute of the half.
The scoring onslaught continued as Mavericks center Daniel Gafford scored his 10th point on a free throw after an explosive and-one dunk against Clippers center Ivica Zubac to give the team a 63-54 lead with 8:37 left in the third quarter.
Mavericks guards Dante Exum and Irving combined for a quick seven points to help the team extend its lead to 15 points as Dallas led 85-70 with 38 seconds remaining in the quarter.
A pair of free throws from Los Angeles guard Paul George cut the lead to just 13 points, but Mavericks guard Josh Green made a floater off an Irving assist to give Dallas an 87-72 lead entering the final quarter.
The Mavericks stayed in attack mode to enter the final portion of the game as center Dereck Lively II made a layup to give them their largest lead at 20 points with 9:24 left in the game.
This lead grew to 24 points as Irving made an and-one three-point shot with 5:38 remaining in the game as the Mavericks inched closer to eliminating the Clippers and moving to the second round.
A small scoring run by the Clippers cut the lead to just 13 points with 2:57 remaining in the game, but a few key stops and strong offensive possessions by the Mavericks helped carry them to a 114-101 victory.
The Mavericks will now move forward to the second round of the NBA Playoffs, where they will play the Oklahoma City Thunder in Game 1 on Tuesday night.