Mavs weather late push from Jazz, steal 2-1 series lead in Game 3 without Luka Doncic

SALT LAKE CITY — The Mavericks expected to take an immediate punch from the Utah Jazz as soon as Game 3 tipped off Thursday night.

They weathered it — about three quarters later than they expected.

Dallas won 126-118 to take a 2-1 lead in the first-round series and reclaim home-court advantage despite playing a third consecutive game with Luka Doncic on the bench, still rehabbing his left calf strain.

The Mavericks led by 17 points (83-66) with less than six minutes left in the third quarter, but Utah fought back to cut Dallas’ lead to 1 point (103-102) with 6:42 remaining.

Time for panic without their superstar?

Not Jalen Brunson and Spencer Dinwiddie, who scored 18 of the Mavericks’ 29 fourth-quarter points, including eight unanswered after the Jazz’s comeback push, to seal the franchise’s first victory in Utah since April 2016, snapping an 11-game losing streak in Vivint Arena.

Brunson finished with 31 points (12 of 22 shooting) and five assists in 31 minutes despite facing physical — and, at times, controversial — defense.

Dinwiddie, Reggie Bullock, Dorian Finney-Smith, Maxi Kleber, Josh Green and Davis Bertans finished in double-figure scoring, too.

And the Mavericks finished what could be their last game this series without Doncic with the decisive, winning haymaker.

“That group in that locker room — they truly believe,” coach Jason Kidd said. “That third quarter, they came out and they hit us, and it would’ve been easy for us to just give up the lead and say, ‘Hey, we’ve got to come back Saturday,’ but those guys fought.”

Name a statistic or sequence from Thursday night, and the Mavericks likely had their way in the first half.

Brunson scored six of their first eight points, and then Kleber hit three 3-pointers in his first two minutes off the bench. Green followed with his first two career playoff threes and a pair of steals, and Bertans added a chasedown block.

The Mavericks led 27-20 after the first quarter and then by 15 points a couple minutes into the second.

Bertans logged a four-point play, and Trey Burke drew a flagrant foul on a 3-point attempt soon after, leading to a rare six-point possession for Dallas.

And so the Luka-less Mavericks cruised — until Brunson went down.

As Jazz guard Mike Conley swished a 3-pointer with five minutes left in the second quarter, Brunson waited near the paint, preparing for the Mavericks to start their next offensive possession.

But before Conley’s shot fell through the hoop, Jazz forward Royce O’Neale forcefully shoved Brunson in the back with his elbow. Brunson struggled to stand and limped across the court, holding his lower back.

Brunson intentionally fouled to stop play so he could check out, and as he walked gingerly to the bench, officials whistled him for a technical foul, just the second unsportsmanlike call he’s triggered since his junior year of high school.

Good news for the Mavericks: They outscored Utah by seven points in 4:38 without Brunson to lead 68-50 at halftime, and their leading point guard in Doncic’s absence returned to start the third quarter.

But the Jazz — notorious this season for blowing large, late leads — didn’t wilt.

All-Star guard Donovan Mitchell tallied 18 of his 32 points in the third quarter to help Utah outscore Dallas 40-29 in the period. Jazz coach Quin Snyder sat Rudy Gobert and Hassan Whiteside for an extended stretch while turning to smaller lineups and little-used reserves to spark his offense.

But Dallas’ poise as the NBA’s best team in clutch situations since Feb. 1 didn’t waver.

The Mavericks’ defense limited Utah’s league-leading offense to 9 of 27 from three while tormenting Gobert and the Jazz’s frontcourt-heavy defensive scheme with consistent corner threes.

After Utah earned a 19-rebound advantage in each of the first two games, the Mavericks cut their deficit on the boards to 32-31 in Game 3.

From the bench, Doncic showed some of his most explosive movement since he strained his calf April 10, dancing with cheer for big plays, particularly Dinwiddie’s thunderous dunk over Gobert early in the third quarter.

Dallas ruled Doncic out a few hours before tipoff Thursday, his third consecutive playoff absence because “we said from the start of his injury we were going to be cautious,” Kidd said.

But he again ran through a pre-game workout on the arena court, showing more lateral movement and ease in various shooting spots. Except on one shot — when he faked out assistant coach Peter Patton, who served as his defender, and tossed the ball up over his head without even attempting to post up first.

No-look swish.

Attention for Luka Calf Watch turned to his increasingly likely return for Saturday afternoon’s Game 4

But not before the Mavericks relish their heavy-weight triumph Thursday night.

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