Dončić and Kyrie Irving had yet another strong outing together, too, The duo combined for 66 points in the win for Dallas, and they helped spark a 14-3 run to close out the game and the nine-point win. Irving hit a huge contested corner 3-pointer during that run, which all-but pushed Minnesota out of reach.

Dončić has averaged 32.7 points per game so far in the Western Conference finals, and Irving has scored at least 30 points in two of their three wins.

Mavericks jump up early, lose Dereck Lively

The Mavericks jumped up quickly over the Timberwolves after a strong first half, but they lost center Dereck Lively in the process.

Lively, who has shot a perfect 13-of-13 from the field so far this series, dominated yet again inside to kick off Game 3. He even threw down a massive dunk over Rudy Gobert in the first quarter.

But early in the second quarter, Lively took an inadvertent knee to the back of his head in the paint from Karl Anthony-Towns. That sent him down to the court hard, where he remained curled up in a ball clearly unwell for quite some time. Eventually, he was helped off the court very slowly.

Lively was considered questionable to return at halftime with a neck sprain, and he was eventually ruled out. He finished with six points and three rebounds. It’s unclear how long he’ll be out, but his status for Game 4 is absolutely in doubt.

Despite losing Lively, the Mavericks pushed ahead to a 60-52 lead at halftime after a mini Minnesota run to close out the period. Towns was basically a nonexistent factor for the Timberwolves offensively in the first half. He went 0-of-7 from the field to start the game, and finished the half with five points while shooting 0-of-5 from behind the arc. The Timberwolves shot just 4-of-16 from the 3-point line as a team, too. Dončić and Irving, however, combined for 29 points for Dallas.