Warriors vs. Mavericks score, takeaways: Golden State contains Luka Doncic, dominates Dallas in Game 1 of WCF

The Golden State Warriors take a 1-0 lead over the Dallas Mavericks within the Western Convention finals with an emphatic 112-87 win in Recreation 1 on Wednesday night time. They’re now 7-0 at dwelling within the playoffs, and can look to stay excellent in Recreation 2, which is ready for Friday night time.

After a aggressive begin to the sport, the Warriors grabbed the lead in the midst of the primary quarter and by no means trailed once more. Popping out of the break, Stephen Curry caught hearth and led a 10-0 run to completely break issues open. The onslaught continued all through the second half because the Warriors led by as a lot as 30. Curry completed with 21 factors, 12 rebounds and 4 assists to guide a balanced Warriors assault that had seven double-figure scorers.

Luka Doncic had 20 factors, seven rebounds and 4 assists to guide the Mavericks in defeat. This was one of many worst offensive performances of the playoffs for the Mavs as they shot 36 p.c from the sector and a brutal 11 of 48 from 3-point land.  

Listed here are some key takeaways from the sport:

1. The third-quarter Warriors are again

Throughout the heyday of this Warriors championship core, they made a behavior of breaking video games open within the third quarter. They might make changes, flip up the depth and earlier than their opponents knew what was occurring they might flip aggressive video games into blowouts. 

In Recreation 1, they confirmed they nonetheless have that magic. Whereas the Warriors led for almost all of the primary half, the Mavericks solely trailed by 9 on the break and have been nonetheless effectively inside putting distance. By 7:16 remaining within the third quarter, the Warriors have been up by 18 and the sport was primarily over. 

Steph Curry and Klay Thompson, who each struggled to seek out their offense within the first half, lastly received going within the third, combining for 20 factors on 8 of 13 from the sector. Early within the body they powered a 10-0 run in lower than two minutes that was the spotlight of the night time for the Warriors. As soon as Curry begins dancing, it is a unhealthy signal for the opposite workforce. 

2. Warriors’ position gamers step up

A lot has been made concerning the Mavericks’ supporting solid in the course of the playoffs, however on Wednesday night time it was the Warriors’ position gamers that swung the sport. Seven totally different Warriors scored in double figures, and 6 of these gamers had no less than 5 rebounds as effectively. 

It was a real workforce effort, however Andrew Wiggins and Kevon Looney deserve some additional recognition for his or her efforts. These two have been terrific, particularly within the first quarter when the likes of Curry, Thompson and Jordan Poole did not have a lot occurring offensively. They scored 16 of the Warriors’ 28 first-quarter factors, and practically matched the Mavericks by themselves in that body. Looney shot an ideal 5 of 5 from the sector, and all informed, they mixed for 29 factors, 10 rebounds and 7 assists.

Wiggins additionally made an actual distinction on the defensive finish. He was tasked with guarding Luka Doncic, and put in a formidable shift towards the phenom. With Wiggins main the way in which, the Warriors held Doncic to simply 20 factors on 6 of 18 from the sector, which was his lowest scoring and least environment friendly recreation of the playoffs. 

“I believed Wiggs was incredible,” Warriors head coach Steve Kerr mentioned. “He did a incredible job. Wiggs is simply an enormous a part of our protection and our workforce.”

3. Mavericks lose their contact from downtown

The Mavericks’ offensive method is slightly easy: house the ground with shooters and play drive-and-kick basketball. Their 40.9 3-point makes an attempt per recreation are greater than some other workforce within the postseason, and to a big extent they dwell and die by the three. In Recreation 1, they died. 

They began off 3 of 19 from downtown within the first quarter, and it did not get any higher from there, as they completed 11 of 48. This was the least environment friendly 3-point taking pictures recreation of the playoffs for the Mavericks, and got here on an evening once they set a brand new franchise file for 3-point makes an attempt within the postseason. That’s not an excellent mixture. 

Whereas the Mavericks did miss a bunch of open seems, it additionally felt like they began to accept 3s as the sport went alongside. Whereas the shot is a crucial a part of their offense, it isn’t good when it turns into the one half. The Mavericks solely had six makes an attempt on the rim all recreation, and managed simply 32 factors within the paint. 

Nonetheless, as unhealthy as issues have been in Recreation 1, the workforce is assured it may well bounce again. 

“Our offense goes to return,” Jalen Brunson mentioned. “We’ll be high-quality on offense. We had a variety of beauty tonight, and if we simply belief our work ethic and approach, I am snug with the pictures we received tonight.”