MINNESOTA TIMBERWOLVES coach Chris Finch calls them 3-minute games.

In this case, he was off by 38 seconds.

  P.J. Washington  broke a late tie with a 3-pointer, Daniel Gafford made big plays at both ends of the court down the stretch and the Dallas Mavericks outdueled the visiting Timberwolves for a 116-107 victory in Game 3 of the Western Conference finals Sunday night to go up 3-0 in the best-of-seven series.

The Mavericks can advance to the NBA Finals for the first time since winning the 2011 title when the clubs meet again Tuesday in Dallas. The Mavericks pulled away thanks to a 12-3 run in the final 3:38.

“We need one more. Nothing’s done yet,” said Mavericks star Luka Doncic, who shared game-high scoring honors with teammate Kyrie Irving with 33 points. “They have an amazing team. If we get one more, then we get a rest.”

The Mavericks shot 55.9 percent from the floor and 50 percent (14 of 28) from 3-point range. Dallas took 14 more free-throw attempts and shot 83.9 percent from the stripe.

Anthony Edwards finished with 26 points, nine rebounds and a game-high nine assists for the Timberwolves, who shot 50.6 percent from the floor but hit only 9 of 30 attempts from beyond the arc.

“I thought it was our offense that broke down more than anything,” Mr. Finch said. “We have to try to score alongside them. The whole series, we’ve struggled to close games. These three-minute games that we’re playing, we’re losing. There was some sloppy execution there, too. We’ve got to be better.”

After trailing by as many as 12 points in the first half, the Timberwolves drew even at 77-all on Mr. Edwards’ basket with 4:51 remaining in the third quarter, the first of 10 ties in the next 13 minutes.

Mr. Washington broke the last deadlock with his 3-pointer with 3:38 remaining to give the Mavericks a 107-104 lead. Mr. Doncic made it 109-105 on a short jumper with 2:16 remaining, and Irving connected from the right corner for a six-point advantage.

“They tried to double me the whole game; they tried to double Ky(rie). That just makes us better,” Mr. Doncic said. “Everybody touches the ball; everybody makes plays. That’s what helps us win. We come down to the stretch and we execute.”

Getting additional playing time after backup center Dereck Lively II had to leave the game in the third quarter with a strained neck, Mr. Gafford blocked Mike Conley’s layup attempt with 56.7 seconds left, then dunked a lob pass from Mr. Doncic despite being fouled.

Mr. Gafford’s free throw increased the lead to 114-105 with 34.8 seconds remaining, effectively closing the door on the third-seeded Timberwolves.

Mr. Doncic finished with seven rebounds, five assists and five steals. Mr. Washington chipped in with 16 points and eight rebounds, while Derrick Jones, Jr. added 11 points.

Karl-Anthony Towns had 14 points and 11 rebounds for the Timberwolves, but shot just 5-for-18 overall and 0-for-8 on 3-pointers. Mike Conley had 16 points, Jaden McDaniels chipped in with 15, Naz Reid 14 and Kyle Anderson 10. — Reuters

THE BOSTON CELTICS are in the driver’s seat but Indiana Pacers coach Rick Carlisle says his club will be controlling the throttle in Game 4 of the Eastern Conference finals.

There’s no reason for Indiana to do anything other than push the pedal to the metal on Monday night in Indianapolis since no team has recovered from a 3-0 deficit in NBA playoff history.

“We’re not going to be deterred,” Mr. Carlisle said of the mountain to navigate. “We’re going to be back here Monday night looking to extend the series and we’re going to come at it even harder. We have to. We don’t have a choice…. Believe me, we are going after them.”

While the Pacers will stay off the brakes, the Celtics will be trying to close the door on the series.

Top-seeded Boston moved within one victory of advancing to the East finals for the second time in three seasons by rallying from an 18-point, third-quarter deficit to post a 114-111 road victory in Game 3 on Saturday.

“We’ve met every challenge,” Celtics star Jayson Tatum said. “We’re in a great position right now, one win away from the finals. But we can’t look past Monday or anything like that, and we have a special opportunity to go back to the finals.”

Indiana played without All-NBA third-team selection Tyrese Haliburton in Game 3 and also could be without the star point guard’s services on Monday. Carlisle said he had no injury update to provide during his Sunday media availability. — Reuters

PARIS — Carlos Alcaraz eased into the second round of the French Open after shrugging off pre-tournament concerns about his forearm while fellow seeds Andrey Rublev and Hubert Hurkacz advanced with hard-fought wins as the Grand Slam began on Sunday.

Much of the focus was on title contender Mr. Alcaraz’s recent right forearm injury in the build-up to the year’s second major with the 21-year-old Spaniard saying he still had lingering concerns ahead of his clash with American J.J. Wolf.

But cheered on by the Philippe Chatrier crowd, the two-time Grand Slam champion who skipped three of the four tune-up events he planned to participate in, thumped the lucky loser 6-1, 6-2, 6-1 and will face qualifier Jesper De Jong next.

Four-time Grand Slam champion Naomi Osaka and 2017 winner Jelena Ostapenko advanced before rain briefly interrupted play.

Ms. Osaka’s reward for a battling 6-1, 4-6, 7-5 win over Italian Lucia Bronzetti could be a meeting with defending champion Iga Swiatek in the second round.

The top-seeded Ms. Swiatek faces Leolia Jeanjean on Monday.

Ms. Ostapenko continued her strong season by beating Romania’s Jaqueline Cristian 6-4, 7-5.

Madrid champion and sixth seed Mr. Rublev was pushed hard by Ms. Osaka’s compatriot Taro Daniel before securing a 6-2, 6-7(3), 6-3, 7-5 victory while Polish eighth seed Hurkacz was dragged the distance by another Japanese player in Shintaro Mochizuki.

Mr. Hurkacz scored a 4-6, 6-3, 3-6, 6-0, 6-3 victory.

“I’m honestly really excited. I watched her a lot when I was pregnant,” said Osaka, who returned to the tour in January after a 15-month maternity break.

“Honestly, I think it’s an honor to play her in the French Open, because she’s won more than once here.”

Ostapenko continued her strong season by beating Romania’s Jaqueline Cristian 6-4 7-5, but it was the end of the road for fellow former champion Barbora Krejcikova who was beaten 7-6(3) 6-4 by Viktorija Golubic.

Madrid champion and sixth seed Rublev was pushed hard by Osaka’s compatriot Taro Daniel before securing a 6-2 6-7(3) 6-3 7-5 victory while Polish eighth seed Hurkacz was dragged the distance by another Japanese player in Shintaro Mochizuki.

Hurkacz returned from the rain break to seal a 4-6 6-3 3-6 6-0 6-3 victory.

Grigor Dimitrov, the 10th seed, had no such trouble as he completed a smooth 6-4 6-3 6-4 win over Aleksandar Kovacevic.

Earlier, thousands of spectators made their way through the gates, with their panama hats and sunglasses put to good use in the bright afternoon sunshine before the umbrellas came out.

With fit-again 14-time champion Rafa Nadal back in Paris but playing fourth seed Alexander Zverev only on Monday, they gathered in large numbers to see Alcaraz showcase his skills.

“I really want to see an American go far but I think Alcaraz is going to follow in Nadal’s footsteps,” said Jake, an American fan from New York who was attending his first French Open.

“He’s from Spain and he’s been playing really good in the different tournaments he’s been in. He’s won the US Open, he’s won Wimbledon and I think he’s coming for the French Open.”

French hopes of a first men’s champion since Yannick Noah’s triumph over four decades ago were dampened somewhat earlier as their number one player and 17th seed Ugo Humbert crashed to a 6-4 2-6 6-4 6-3 defeat by Italian Lorenzo Sonego.

But French fans who were out in full force had reason to celebrate as Caroline Garcia and Richard Gasquet kept the flag flying with battling victories.

“This year, we’re starting with the first day so we hope to see some French players, which isn’t the case when you go in the middle of the week,” said local fan Alex Lefevre, who has been a regular with his eight-year-old son.

Ageing warriors Stan Wawrinka and Andy Murray both struggled with apparent niggles in their evening session encounter, but it was the Swiss former champion who prevailed 6-4 6-4 6-2 in what is likely to be the Briton’s final appearance in the major.

Wawrinka shared a warm embrace and a heartfelt conversation with the beaten Murray at the net when the match finished. — Reuters