The first half belonged to Luka Doncic. Kyrie Irving took over at number two.
The Dallas Mavericks added a 114-101 Game 6 win over the Los Angeles Clippers on Friday to take a 4-2 series lead and advance to the second round of the playoffs. The fifth-seeded Mavericks advanced to a second-round matchup with the top-seeded Oklahoma City Thunder. The Clippers’ season is coming to a disappointing end.
After a 123-93 loss at home in Game 5, the Clippers fell into a 34-26 first quarter hole on Friday. They fought back to tie the game at 52 before halftime while limiting Irving to just two first-half points. That run marked their last stand of the series.
Irving sizzles for 28 second-half points
The Mavericks broke the game open after halftime as Irving led 35-20 in the third quarter with 13 points in the stanza. A fourth-quarter rally was no match for the Clippers, who failed to match the dynamic Dallas duo.
After making 1 of 6 shots in the first half, Irving hit 5 of 6 shots in the third quarter. A personal 5-0 Irving run with a floater in traffic and a second-chance 3-pointer extended Dallas’ lead to 15 points in the final minute of the quarter.
An and-1 Irving 3-pointer in the fourth extended Dallas’ lead to 106-82, extinguishing any lingering hopes of a Clippers comeback.
Irving finished with 30 points after scoring two in the first half. He added six rebounds, four assists, two steals and two blocks. He shot 11 of 19 from the field and 5 of 9 from 3.
Doncic had 28 points, 13 assists and seven rebounds. On a night where he struggled from the field (9 of 26, 1 of 3 of 10), he relinquished the scoring spotlight to Irving in the second half.
A familiar postseason story for the Clippers
With Kawhi Leonard sidelined and both Paul George and James Harden struggling from the field, Los Angeles lacked the ability to compete. Norman Powell led the Clippers with 20 points off the bench.
George had 18 points, 11 rebounds and five assists. He shot 6 of 18 from the field and hit 2-of-10 3-point attempts. Harden posted 16 points, 13 assists and seven rebounds. He shot 5 of 16 from the floor and missed six of his 3-point attempts. Russell Westbrook scored six points in nine minutes off the bench.
Leonard missed four of the series’ six games with knee inflammation. He has now played in four of the Clippers’ last 19 playoff games.
The Mavericks outshot the Clippers from the floor (48.2% to 41.5%) and from 3-point range (33.3% to 25.8%) on a night where Doncic struggled with his shot.
The Mavericks now have three days off to prepare for Tuesday’s Game 1 against the Thunder. They will wait on the status of backup forward Maxi Kleber, who suffered a sprained right shoulder. A sharp decline in the second quarter and did not return.
The Clippers head into another offseason of questions surrounding an All-Star-studded roster that failed to compete for a championship and was eliminated in the first round of the playoffs for the second straight season.
