Mavericks vs Warriors Game 4 score: Mavs avoid sweep with hot shooting, head back to San Francisco for Game 5

Eventually, the shots were going to fall for the Dallas Mavericks in their matchup with the Golden State Warriors in the Western Conference Finals. 

The Mavericks knocked down 20 three-pointers Tuesday night in Dallas, avoiding a sweep with a 119-109 win in Game 4 and sending the best-of-seven series back to San Francisco with Golden State holding a 3-1 series lead. 

In the first three games of the series, Dallas shot a combined 32.6% from beyond the arc, allowing Golden State to take a commanding 3-0 series lead. But on Tuesday night at American Airlines Center, Dallas came out hot, making 11 of 23 three-point attempts in the first half and taking a 15-point lead into halftime. 

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“Everybody in that locker room felt like we had more basketball to play,” Dallas forward Dorian Finney-Smith said. “We just wanted to get the win any way. … Feel like we came out desperate that first half.”

Dallas was led by Luka Doncic, who while not incredibly efficient from the floor, poured in 30 points, 14 rebounds, and nine assists on the night. 

The Mavericks took a 29-point lead into the fourth quarter before allowing Golden State’s bench unit to cut the lead to 8 with just over 3 minutes to play in the fourth quarter. 

A dunk by Doncic and a Jonathan Kuminga charge put an end to the threat. 

“Just made the decision to see if we could pull off a miracle, but it wasn’t meant to be,” Warriors coach Steve Kerr said. “Dallas was great tonight. They deserved to win. This is the conference finals. This is how it’s supposed to be.”

Reggie Bullock made 6 of his 10 three-point attempts, finishing the night with 23 points, and Finney-Smith added 23 points and 6 rebounds to avoid the sweep. 

“It was almost like an ego win (for Dallas). You come out and really have nothing to lose. So that confidence started early,” Golden State’s Stephen Curry said. “And we really didn’t do nothing to slow it down, and then that’s when the avalanche starts. You tip your hat to them.” 

Game 5 will tip-off at 9 p.m. ET at Chase Center in San Francisco, California. 

The Associated Press contributed to this report.