On May 16, Beijing time, the Western Conference semifinals of the NBA playoffs staged the battle of Tianwang Mountain, and the Thunder played against the Mavericks at home.
Back at home, the Thunder changed formations, Giddey sat on the bench for the first time in his career in this game, the first quarter of the game opened with a very intense game between the two teams, Doncic and Jones Jr. shot extremely hard, and the Thunder took turns to kill the enemy, Jones Jr. scored a dunk after the Mavericks took a 22-17 lead, and the Mavericks called a timeout after Jaylin Williams hit a three-pointer, and the Mavericks led 24-22 at the end of the first quarter.
In the second quarter, the Mavericks started with an 11-5 run under the leadership of Doncic, stopped the Thunder 35-27, and after the timeout, the Mavericks continued to score in a row, and the Mavericks led 40-27 after Doncic countered and scored a layup. The Thunder scored six points in a row after increasing the height inside, chasing it to 33-40, the Mavericks led 45-33 after Jones Jr. made a three-point shot, and after a timeout, Gafford scored under the basket, Doncic and Irving continued to score, the Mavericks played a wave of 22-8 and took a 50-35 lead, Alexander then scored four points in a row to relieve the Thunder, Jalen Williams scored again for the Thunder after a counterattack dunk, and the Mavericks led 54-44 at the end of the first half.
First-half stats, Thunder: Alexander 10 points, Jalen Williams 4 points, Holmgren 7 points, Isaiah Joe 6 points, Dort 9 points. Mavericks: Doncic 17 points, 6 rebounds and 7 assists, Irving 7 points, Jones 15 points.
The game opened the third quarter with a bit of a stalemate between the two teams, and the offensive efficiency was not high, and the Mavericks also hit a three-pointer after Jones Jr., and the Thunder called a timeout after the Mavericks led 65-51. Doncic hit a long-range three-pointer after the Mavericks led 68-53, the Thunder suddenly scored consecutive points under the leadership of the pressure mountain, Wallace hit a three-pointer after the Thunder chased 60-71, and the Mavericks quickly called a timeout. After the timeout, Irving hit a three-point shot to stabilize the Mavericks' morale again, and then Doncic came on and Irving rested, and Alexander used his personal ability to score 2+1 after Doncic immediately threw three points in response, and the Mavericks led 79-67 at the end of the third quarter.
In the fourth quarter of the game, Alexander opened the break, the Mavericks took the opportunity to expand the lead led by Doncic's personal score, Alexander was forced to come back early after the Mavericks led 86-71, but Doncic immediately hit a three-pointer, the Mavericks stopped the Thunder 89-71, Alexander made a three-pointer after the timeout, Holmgren scored and Dort also hit a three-pointer, the Thunder played an 8-0 mini-climax, 79-89 stopped the Mavericks, and the Thunder chased it to 81-89 after Jayway scored, Washington scored inside and the margin returned to double digits. In the end, the Mavericks held on to their advantage and won the battle of Tianwang Mountain 104-90.
Technical statistics
Thunder: Alexander 30 points, 6 rebounds, 8 assists, 2 steals; Holmgren 13 points, 4 rebounds and 1 assist; Dort 12 points, 6 rebounds, 4 assists and 2 steals; Williams 12 points, 6 rebounds, 3 assists and 3 steals; Giddey 11 points, 3 rebounds and 2 assists; Joe had 6 points and 3 rebounds; Williams 3 points, 1 rebound and 1 assist; Wallace 3 points; Wiggins 2 points, 4 rebounds, 1 assist and 1 steal;
Mavericks: Doncic 31 points, 10 rebounds and 11 assists; Jones 19 points, 1 rebound, 1 assist and 1 steal; Irving 12 points, 2 rebounds, 4 assists and 1 steal; Levy 11 points, 10 rebounds, 1 assist and 1 steal; Washington 10 points, 10 rebounds, 4 assists and 1 steal; Gafford 9 points, 7 rebounds and 1 assist; Hardaway II 5 points and 1 rebound; Green had 5 points, 2 rebounds, 3 assists and 1 steal; Hardy 2 points, 3 rebounds and 2 assists;