Thunder come from down under
Fourth-quarter rally gets OKC even with Mavs
DALLAS — Shai Gilgeous-alexander scored 34 points and the Oklahoma City Thunder overcame a Dallas franchise playoff-record 13 blocks, rallying for a 100-96 victory Monday night to even their Western Conference semifinal series at 2-2.
Chet Holmgren and Lu Dort hit clutch 3-pointers late, and Jalen Williams drove for a dunk and a 94-91 lead with 1:29 remaining as Dallas players and coaches screamed for a double-dribble call.
The teams split a pair on each other’s home court. Game 5 is Wednesday night in Oklahoma City.
The Mavericks’ last chance to tie came with
10.1 seconds left when trailing by two, Luka Doncic had two free throws. But the Dallas superstar missed the first.
Backed by one of their best defensive efforts of the season, the Mavs led by 14 early in the second half. But their offense disappeared from there, and the Thunder slowly crawled back into the game.
Oklahoma City went in front for the first time since early in the game – and for good – on Holmgren’s 3-pointer for an 89-86 lead with 3:24 remaining.
P.J. Washington led Dallas in scoring again with 21 points, while Doncic posted a triple-double with 18 points, 12 rebounds and 10 assists. Guard Kyrie Irving had his second single-digit scoring game of the series with nine points.
Dort’s clutch 3-pointer came on a 3-of-10 shooting night from deep as he finished with 17 points. Holmgren had 18 points and nine rebounds.
■ Celtics 109, Cavaliers 102: At Cleveland, Jayson Tatum scored 33 points as Boston beat the severely short-handed Cavaliers to take a commanding 3-1 lead in their East semifinal series.
Jaylen Brown added 27 for the Celtics, who can close out Cleveland with a win in Game 5 on Wednesday night at home.
The Cavs got pushed to the brink of elimination with two top players in street clothes on the bench, as Donovan Mitchell (calf ) and Jarrett Allen (ribs) sat out with injuries.
It was nothing new for a Cleveland team that dealt with injuries all season, but it was a big ask for the Cavs to try to survive without Mitchell, their All-star guard who has carried the offensive load throughout the postseason, or Allen, their leading rebounder.
The top-seeded Celtics, who have shown a tendency to relax at the wrong time, didn’t show the Cavs much mercy.
Tatum had his second straight strong performance, adding 11 rebounds and five assists. Jrue Holiday had 16 points for Boston.
Darius Garland scored 30 and Evan Mobley and Caris Levert 19 apiece for the Cavs.