Jazz shut down Luka Doncic-less Mavs in Game 1

Donovan Mitchell led his Jazz to victory in Game 1. Rob Gray-USA TODAY Sports

Jazz shut down Luka Doncic-less Mavericks in Game 1 of playoff series

By Adam Stites | Last updated 4/16/22

The Utah Jazz jumped out to a 1-0 lead in a first-round NBA Playoffs series against the Dallas Mavericks with a 99-93 road win Saturday.

Dallas was without star guard Luka Doncic, who suffered a calf injury in the team's regular-season finale. The Mavericks struggled to find offense for much of the game in his absence, but found a rhythm in the fourth quarter and cut Utah's double-digit lead to just one in the final minutes. The Jazz held off the surge thank, in part, to a clutch three-pointer from Royce O'Neale.

Big shot for the kid from Killeen!#TakeNote | @bucketsoneale00 pic.twitter.com/R71EebuhAu
— Utah Jazz (@utahjazz) April 16, 2022

Jazz guard Donovan Mitchell led all scorers in the game with 32 points, six assists and six rebounds. Bojan Bogdanovic added 26 points for Utah, which included 20 points in the first half.

Doncic averaged 28.4 points, 8.7 assists and 9.1 rebounds during the regular season, but is currently considered "day-to-day" by Mavericks coach Jason Kidd due to a calf strain. Dallas leaned heavily on Jalen Brunson and Spencer Dinwiddie in his absence.

Game 2 in Dallas is scheduled to tip at 8:30 p.m. ET on Monday.

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