Kyrie Irving helps Mavericks seize control of series vs. Thunder - ESPN

DALLAS — Kyrie Irving scored 22 points, including a running left-hander in the lane in the final minute to help Dallas hold on, and the Mavericks beat the Oklahoma City Thunder 105-101 on Saturday for a 2-1 lead in the Western Conference semifinals.

Luka Doncic also had 22 points to go with 15 rebounds, and P.J. Washington scored 27, just two shy of his playoff high from the previous game.

Shai Gilgeous-Alexander had 31 points, 10 rebounds and 4 blocks but was called for a charge with Doncic defending on a drive with 29 seconds left and the Thunder trailing by five.

Oklahoma City has lost consecutive games after starting 5-0 in the playoffs. Game 4 is Monday night in Dallas.

Irving bounced back from just the third single-digit scoring game of his lengthy playoff career with 14 points in the second half, including six consecutive Dallas points in the fourth quarter that helped the Mavs to their biggest lead of the final period at nine.

«One of my coaches just came up to me and said I waited too long, so obviously I've got to be better on my end,» Irving said. «We're going against a young team. So we just want to continue to do the things that get us these W's, and it starts on the defensive end.»

Doncic came into the game with a sprained right knee and a sore left ankle and took a hard fall on his back in the final two minutes when he and Lu Dort, the primary defender on the NBA scoring champion, jumped for a loose ball. A jump ball was called, and Doncic retrieved the loose ball with Dallas up three.

Oklahoma City coach Mark Daigneault decided to foul Dereck Lively II intentionally in the fourth quarter, and the rookie center missed three of the first four free throws. But he hit the next four in a row, the last putting