Doncic notches 35 as Mavs beat Clippers to take a 3-2 series lead

Luka Doncic notched 20 of his 35 points in the 2^nd half and had 10 assists and 7 boards, leading the Dallas Mavericks to a 123-93 win against the LA Clippers in Game 5 at crypto.com Arena in Los Angeles, CA, and a 3-2 lead in their 1^st-round matchup.

Maxi Kleber finished with 5 three-pointers and Kyrie Irving scored 14 points for Dallas, who clamped down on Los Angeles defensively and triumph decisively in California for the 2^nd time in the matchup. Mavericks moved to the brink of its 1^st-round postseason matchup win since 2022 and only its 3^rd since triumphing with the National Basketball Association title in 2011.

BACK TO DALLAS. MAVS WIN!!@Chime // #OneForDallas pic.twitter.com/V1CcPFgC6m

— Dallas Mavericks (@dallasmavs) May 2, 2024

Luka is competing on a sprained right knee that limited him at times in the matchup, but the Mavs star, without a doubt, got more comfortable and more dangerous as Game 5 went on. Doncic notched 14 points in the 3^rd quarter, while Dallas stretched their lead to 25 and had a 20-point lead into the 4^th.

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Game 6 is Friday in Texas.

OH MY J🎱SH pic.twitter.com/J8Peq79GJa

— Dallas Mavericks (@dallasmavs) May 2, 2024

Paul George and Ivica Zubac notched 15 points each for Los Angeles, who played their 2^nd consecutive and 3^rd of the matchup without Kawhi Leonard.