Shai Gilgeous-Alexander Leads OKC Thunder to Blowout Victory Over Dallas Mavs in Game 1 of Series

OKLAHOMA CITY — The Dallas Mavericks opened their Western Conference semifinal series against the Oklahoma City Thunder with a 117-95 loss. The result occurred despite a tied score through the first quarter.

Dallas held an 8-5 lead until the Thunder went on a 5-0 run to overtake the lead. Doncic succeeded early, but his production offensively slowed down. With Holmgren frequently playing in drop coverage, Doncic often attacked by getting into the gap out of pick-and-roll, with a pull-up in mid-range and a step-back three dropping for him. He even attacked out of double drag against Luguentz Dort's aggressive on-ball defense to get into a short-range turnaround jumper.

An emphasis was placed by the Mavericks' defense on sagging off Josh Giddey in the half-court, a strategy the team often deployed in the regular season. He began initiating the Thunder's offense more frequently to put pressure on Dallas. He even connected on a lob with Chet Holmgren for an and-one and got the rim on the following play.

Josh Green connected on a pair of first-quarter 3-pointers as the game flow settled into a back-and-forth later in the opening period. It was a tightly contested first quarter, with both teams tied 23-23 by the end. Dallas struggled early with turnovers, with Irving accounting for four of six total in the frame.

“Just talked to Kai about [the turnovers]. He said it was his fault, but it’s a team game," Mavs coach Jason Kidd said. "Understanding nerves and everybody wants to do the right thing. We’ve just gotta take care of the ball and if we can do that we’ll get good looks.”

Oklahoma City deployed a small-ball lineup with Jaylin Williams at the five while Gafford was on the court. After making multiple efforts, Gafford blocked a finish by Williams at the rim during one of the possessions.

Irving turned it on to begin the second period, getting downhill to create a trip to the free throw line, followed by an elbow jumper. Dallas initially outscored the Thunder 8-6 in the period, retaking a 31-29 lead entering a timeout with 9:14 left before halftime. Continuing the trend of it being a game filled with momentum swings, Oklahoma City answered with a 9-2 run.

There was a stretch with Doncic as the solo-star on the court when Dort's aggressive defense made it challenging for the Mavericks to get into their offense. There was a lack of connectivity out of double drag that caused frustration for Doncic when he held in the gap with the big defender—Holmgren—committed, but Gafford was out of position.

With Doncic continuing to be the only superstar on the court, the Thunder began doubling him in the half-court, whether in the post or running a ball screen. The goal was to dare Derrick Jones Jr. to shoot by sagging off him to get the ball out of Doncic's hands. Dallas' perimeter shooting struggled while Oklahoma City began to convert.

It was a significant challenge for the Mavericks to contain Gilgeous-Alexander, often resulting in foul calls against contact when he aggressively attacked the paint, otherwise giving up space on a short-range jumper. The Thunder frequently reached the free-throw line down the second-quarter stretch while the Mavericks went up empty on their possessions.

Oklahoma City took a 12-point lead late in the second quarter and entered halftime up 62-53. The Thunder overcame shooting 42.6% from the floor and 31.3% from deep by shooting 22 free throw attempts and converting at a 77.3% rate. Gilgeous-Alexander already had 19 points with 11 free throw attempts, while Aaron Wiggins (12 points) and Holmgren (11 points) scored in double figures.

At times, the Thunder blitzed Dallas to force short roll touches in 4-on-3 while sending an early low man to pressure near the restricted area. Even on isolation possessions, simply flooding the strong side was another approach. Gafford missed a few finishes as a result. Oklahoma City was content with leaving Jones and Washington on the weak side.

Creating by a stretch with the Mavericks making consecutive 3-pointers, Washington did convert on a catch-and-shoot 3-pointer, followed by Irving doing the same. After outscoring the Thunder by a 12-4 margin coming out of halftime, Dallas made it a one-point game until Isaiah Joe answered with a 3-pointer of his own after using a shot fake to force a fly-by contest.

Joe's 3-pointer began a 14-4 run for Oklahoma City in a stretch featuring hot perimeter shooting results, including additional makes from Dort, Holmgren, and Gilgeous-Alexander. The Thunder were suddenly back up by double figures, holding an 80-69 advantage with 4:37 remaining in the third quarter. As was the case throughout the game, Gilgeous-Alexander targeted Doncic on a switch on his step-back jumper.

It wasn't until late in the third quarter that Dallas begun sending a late double when Doncic got switched onto Gilgeous-Alexander. Even on the first possession of the half utilizing this approach, Gilgeous-Alexander successfully attacked Washington for a step-back from deep with Doncic switching onto Dort.

The Thunder took a 15-point lead after Joe hit a 3-pointer late in the third period, followed by Gilgeous-Alexander's acrobatic finish. Doncic, continuing to play through a right knee sprain, struggled to shoot the ball and generate rim pressure. At this point, he had 17 points and eight assists but was shooting just 5-17 overall, 1-7 from beyond the arc, and 6-10 on free throws.

Irving broke down a defender for a tough pull-up 3-pointer to beat the buzzer before the third quarter ended, making it a 10-point game.

The Thunder did not relent. After Doncic rotated as the low defender to help on a drive, Holmgren received a spray-out pass in the corner and made the Mavericks pay by hitting the catch-and-shoot jumper. Oklahoma City was back up by 13 points. The Thunder continued to string together stops and were efficient offensively with an uptick in 3-point shooting execution, leading by 22 before Dallas put in reserves to close the game.