A sensational start to the game from Luka Doncic set the tone for Dallas in Thursday night’s Game 2 victory. Battling a sprained knee, Doncic looked spry in the first quarter en route to a 16-point explosion. The Mavs led by as many as 14 points in a 119-110 win.
“It was just my mentality,” said Doncic. “I think today was one of the hardest game I had to play. I’m battling out there. I try and do my best to help [the] team win with just my mentality. Have a great start, and then the team’s going to follow me.”
The superstar appeared to be hampered by his knee — and due to hitting his face on the floor — for most of the game, but you wouldn’t be able to tell he was limited by looking at his final numbers. Doncic scored 29 points, grabbed 10 rebounds, and had seven assists and three steals. Doncic entered the game 5-of-35 from three over his last four games, but he found the distance last night — connecting on 5-of-8 attempts.
“Some of those shots are a centimeter off or an inch off,” said Kyrie Irving. “We know Luka very well, so we’re not worried relatively, but we understand that we have to continue to feed him confidence. But it starts with him, and he knows that in order for us to be successful, he’s going to have to play his role in his team and be a star of the team. And when it’s our time to star in our role, he gives us that chance.”
While Irving struggled from the field (2-of-8 for nine points), he matched a playoff career-high with 11 assists. P.J. Washington was excellent for the Mavs — matching Doncic with 29 points and adding 11 rebounds, four assists, two steals and one block.
It will be a quick turnaround for both teams, as Game 3 will be played Saturday afternoon in Dallas.
