Deandre Ayton poured in 25 points and the Phoenix Suns led wire to wire Monday night and went on to cruise to a 121-114 victory over the Dallas Mavericks at Footprint Center in Game 1 of the best-of-seven Western Conference semifinals.
Game 2 is back here on Wednesday at 9 p.m. before the venue shifts to Dallas for Games 3 and 4 on Friday and Sunday.
Luka Doncic paced the Mavs with 45 points, 12 rebounds and eight assists, Maxi Kleber tallied 19 points on 5-of-8 three-pointers, and Dorian Finney-Smith scored 15 points, and Jalen Brunson added 13 points.