Mavericks draw first blood with Game 1 win over Timberwolves at Target Center

Kyrie Irving and Luka Doncic combined for 66 points in the victory.

Minnesota Timberwolves guard Anthony Edwards (5) and Dallas Mavericks guard Jaden Hardy (1) fight for the ball in the first quarter during Game 1 of the Western Conference finals at Target Center in Minneapolis on May 22, 2024. / Jesse Johnson-USA TODAY Sports

In a reverse of typical proceedings, Kyrie Irving got the Dallas Mavericks started and Luka Doncic played the part of a closer. The Timberwolves at times struggled to contain both in a 108-105 loss in Game 1 of the Western Conference finals Wednesday night at Target Center in Minneapolis.

Doncic hit a crucial jumper to put the Mavericks up four with 49 seconds remaining in the fourth quarter. While Naz Reid later made a tip-in shot to cut it back to two, Irving made a pair of free throws following the intentional foul that pushed it back to a four-point margin with seven seconds remaining.

The Timberwolves, meanwhile, struggled to find an offensive rhythm late.

"Terrible offense, bad shots, turnovers, no composure," Timberwolves coach Chris Finch said.

Doncic, who tallied 33 points, eight assists and six rebounds, took over during the fourth quarter and made three straight buckets during a 13-0 Mavs run that eventually resulted in an eight-point lead.

Doncic got it all started with a pair of stepback jumpers and a 3 during his own 7-0 run that gave the Mavericks a 91-89 advantage, their first lead of the fourth quarter after trailing by five.

The Timberwolves, however, eventually answered with their own 10-1 run in which they retook the lead with just under five minutes to play. Karl-Anthony Towns was a driving force, hitting a jumper, finding Rudy Gobert for a lob dunk and drilling a 3 that gave the Wolves a 99-98 lead.

Anthony Edwards pushed that to a four-point advantage when he made a 3 for the first bucket following a Mavericks timeout. But Doncic answered with a 3 on the other end, and P.J. Washington later hit another that gave Dallas a lead it would not relinquish.

That all came despite the Timberwolves leading throughout the entire first half and most of the first quarter. Jaden McDaniels came out hot from long range, knocking down a trio of 3s during the first quarter on his way to 19 first-half points. It's the third straight game McDaniels has scored 20 or more points, finishing his night with a team-high 24 points.

"I don't think we played our best basketball (Wednesday)," Edwards said. "One through 15. I think (McDaniels) was the only one that came ready to play (Wednesday). I think everybody else let him down."

Kyle Anderson, who scored 11 points, also got the Wolves going off the bench, particularly early on when he scored seven points in four minutes of action during the first quarter. He even hit a 3-pointer during that stretch. And the Timberwolves led 33-27 after one quarter of action.

But despite maintaining a lead throughout the first half, the Timberwolves did have trouble containing Kyrie Irving, who beat the Wolves up and down the court, finished at the rim and hit an assortment of shots from the midrange. Irving scored 24 of his 30 points in the first half.

Perhaps the five biggest came in the final stretch of the second quarter when he scored five straight points to cut an eight-point margin to three. Irving first got to the rim for a layup and then found his way right back to the paint following a turnover from Edwards. He made a difficult shot in the paint and drew a foul on McDaniels before completing a three-point play to make it 62-59.