Warriors on the verge on sweeping the Mavericks after taking Game 3, 109-100
San Francisco- Golden State is on the verge of returning to the NBA Finals after defeating the Mavericks in Game 3.
After overcoming a 19 point hole and taking Game 2, the Warriors were filled with a rays of confidence and spunk coming out their tunnel for the start of Game 3. Prior to the tip, one of the key factors that coach Steve Kerr talked about was not turning the ball over. If you could find one flaw that has killed the Warriors in the playoffs, it has been their turnovers. Golden State averages around 14 turnovers a game and that was a huge factor of why Dallas jumped out to a huge lead in Game 2.
For majority of the first quarter, Golden State looked a little more polished without turning the ball over. Stephen Curry, Klay Thompson, and Kevon Looney all got in their bag early on and helped the Warriors build a 10 point lead against the Mavericks. Outside of the shooting, the effective 3-2 zone stunned the Mavericks for a bit, which helped the Warriors grab a few steals. Once a 10 point lead was cut to three at the end of the first quarter, 25-22.
Golden State struggled in the second. The open shots that they were getting in the previous quarter was met with a contestant hand in their faces. Collectively they were shooting around 42% from the field as a team, but they could not find the range from behind the arc. At one point in the quarter, they were 3 out of 15 from downtown. Outside of a struggling quarter, their defender in Otto Porter Jr. hobbled off the court with an apparent left foot injury at the 10 minute mark of the quarter and Jordan Poole and Curry was drowning in three fouls. Despite everything the Warriors walked into half with a 48-47 lead.
Golden State was not playing any games at the start of the second half. They went on a 8-2 run to open the quarter, which forced the Mavericks to call a timeout. The third quarter for the Warriors in this series have been the kill shot with pulling out victories. Golden State out-shot Dallas 30-21 in the third and had a double digit lead heading into the fourth. Thompson started playing around the world against Dallas in the fourth quarter. From hitting left, right and middle shots from the arc, the Mavericks had no answer for him. Golden State fought off a late run by the Mavericks to take full control of the series.
Andrew Wiggins finished with a playoff high, 27 points, 3 assists, and 11 rebounds.