The Dallas Mavericks and Boston Celtics won their respective Game 3s on Saturday to each take 2-1 leads in their Conference Semifinal series’.
The Mavericks took Game 3 on their home floor against the Oklahoma City Thunder, 105-101, as PJ Washington led the way with 27 points on 11-for-23 with five three-pointers. Kyrie Irving finished with 22 points, 7 assists, and 5 rebounds on 10-for-17 and was big down the stretch, including a driving, left-handed floater against Jalen Williams with 39 seconds remaining to give the Mavericks a 104-99 lead and effectively ice the game. The shot was yet another display of Irving’s creative arsenal and how he can maneuver to get shots off at difficult angles. Luka Doncic struggled a bit from the field (7-for-17 and just 1-for-4 from long distance), but had 15 rebounds and 5 assists to go along with his 22 points.
The Thunder once again had Shai Gilgeous-Alexander play up to his near-MVP standard, as the guard put up 31 points, 10 rebounds, and 6 assists on 10-for-23 from the field in 42 minutes. On the defensive side, he also tallied 4 blocks and 2 steals. His complete performance made him, per StatMuse on X, the first guard in league history with at least such numbers in a playoff game. On many occasions, SGA was able to get to his spots and score, utilizing his patience and touch. Jalen Williams played a solid game with 16 points, 8 assists, and 6 rebounds on 7-for-12, but he did leave the game briefly with an ankle issue. Chet Holmgren played a better game than he did in Game 2, with 13 points, 8 rebounds, and 4 blocks, but only took eight shots. Dereck Lively II, who was 8-for-12 from the free-throw line and 12 points and 8 rebounds, did a good job defensively on Holmgren. Isaiah Joe gave a good contribution off the bench for the Thunder with 13 points on 3-for-4 from downtown.
At one point in the game, the Mavericks reeled off 16 straight points. The Thunder once again need a little more from their supporting cast if they are to tie the series up at two. Gilgeous-Alexander bore too much of the scoring load once again and at times had to create something out of nothing.
In Cleveland, the Celtics pulled away near the end in a competitive game to win, 106-93.
The Celtics had to contend with Donovan Mitchell, who scored 33 points on 12-for-22, including 7-for-12 from distance, playing 43 minutes. Mitchell was hitting from a variety of spots on the floor, just as he had in Game 2. Evan Mobley posted 17 points and 8 rebounds, while Darius Garland scored 15 and Caris LeVert also scored 15, the latter off the bench.
Too often, it looked like Mitchell was carrying too much of the offensive load. Garland was just 6-for-15 and 1-for-6 from three, and other starters Isaac Okoro and Max Strus were a combined 3-for-15 from the field and 2-for-10 from three. The Cavaliers settled for their share of outside shots, and were outrebounded 44-35. They continue to miss Jarrett Allen’s inside presence as they do not have another solid option to go to in the paint, or rim protection, outside of Mobley (Tristan Thompson played just five minutes). LeVert’s 15 were helpful, but he did take 12 shots to get there.
For the Celtics, Tatum’s 33 points, 13 rebounds, and 6 assists paved the way. Still, he was just 11-for-25 from the field and 2-for-8 from three-point range. Jaylen Brown was outstanding with 28 points on 13-for-17, while Jrue Holiday played a very sound and well-rounded game with 18 points, 8 rebounds, and 5 assists on 7-for-10 shooting. Al Horford settled for his share of threes with no makes (0-for-6), while Derrick White also struggled (4-for-13 from the field, 3-for-8 from three).
The win for the Celtics displayed their mettle on the road, going on a 14-0 run to begin the second half while also responding following a 9-0 Cavalier run shortly thereafter that got the home crowd into it, the home side within 14 after it looked like the contest was going to be a blowout. Tatum, on a baseline dunk, extended the Celtic lead to 79-63 late in the third, and after a triple from LeVert, hit a cool jumper over Strus. Brown hit a big three from the top near the end of the third quarter as the Celtics took an 84-69 lead. The Cavaliers got the deficit to nine with just over eight minutes to go, but they could not capitalize, as LeVert missed a contested three from the corner early in the shot clock, and Mitchell badly misfired on a triple attempt from the wing. Celtic guard Peyton Prichard responded with a deep triple with 7:42 remaining to get the lead back to double digits, 91-79. The Celtics did not allow the Cavaliers to get back within 10 the rest of the way.
Tatum, with the game secured with 2:20 remaining and his team up 13, put the dagger in with a fall away baseline jumper over Strus.
In Game 4 on Monday night, the Cavaliers will, like the Thunder with Shai Gilgeous-Alexander, need to have more help for their star player if they want to be victorious.
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