Stephen Curry's Golden State Warriors inflicted a resounding defeat on the Dallas Mavericks (112-87) by a 'limited' 20-point Luka Doncic in the opening game of the Western Conference Finals.
Three days after Doncic destroyed the Phoenix Suns in Arizona, the Slovenian star had a hard time against Golden State.
The Warriors, already leading by nine points at half time (54-45), made the difference in the third quarter, winning 34-24 and taking the lead to 19 points at the start of the fourth quarter.
They stretched further at the start of the final quarter, to touch +27, before winning comfortably.
In a team with seven players above 10 points, Curry led the way with 21 points, 12 rebounds and 4 assists, while Jordan Poole and Andrew Wiggins each scored 19 points.
Doncic, author of a game without flashes, was still the best scorer of the Mavericks with 20 points.
In the first half of the match the Mavs made a lot of mistakes, with 14 out of 44 from two points.
Despite everything, in the middle of the second quarter they were only two points behind (35-33).
But then the Warriors pushed on the accelerator, with an 11-2 directing the match.
Race-2 tomorrow in San Francisco.
The winner of these Western Conference playoffs will face that of the Eastern Conference, Boston or Miami, in the NBA Finals.