Luka Doncic put on a show in Game 1 but not enough of his Dallas Mavericks’ teammates joined him on stage.

Doncic will look to make Act 2 better than the first when the Mavericks visit the Phoenix Suns on Wednesday night, looking to knot the Western Conference semifinal set at a game apiece.

Doncic recorded 45 points, 12 rebounds and eight assists in Monday’s 121-114 road loss. It was a game Dallas never led and trailed by as many as 21 before staging a frantic fourth-quarter comeback that made the score respectable.

The major problem was that Doncic was a one-man ensemble. He scored more points by himself than the rest of the Mavericks’ starters combined (39).

“He got whatever he wanted, when you look at the shots in the paint, behind the arc, midrange, and then also I thought he got his teammates some great looks that we normally had made,” Dallas coach Jason Kidd said afterward. “I thought he played great.

“We’ve just got to get someone to join the party.”

Among the players on the invitation list are starter Jalen Brunson and reserve Spencer Dinwiddie.

Brunson, who averaged 27.8 points in the first round against the Utah Jazz, was just 6-of-16 shooting and scored 13 points. Dinwiddie averaged 15.3 points against Utah but had just eight in the opener against Phoenix.

Doncic said he felt Dallas didn’t attack the inside enough — the area where dominant Suns center Deandre Ayton hangs out — and didn’t do a good job making things tough for the potent Phoenix offense.

“I think our defense lost us the game,” Doncic said. “Our start on the defensive end was terrible, and we’ve got to change that. I know we can play way better defense.”

Six Suns scored in double digits led by Ayton (25 points) and Devin Booker (23).

Booker is struggling to regain his shooting stroke after missing three games in the first-round series against the New Orleans Pelicans due to a right hamstring injury.

Booker was just 7-of-20 shooting in Game 1 versus the Mavericks after having 13 points on 5-of-12 shooting in the final game against the Pelicans.

Chris Paul contributed 19 points but was less than thrilled that Phoenix’s lead of 106-85 with 8:48 remaining was whittled down to five before the club held off the Mavericks.

“We’ll take the win,” Paul said. “It’s not always going to be pretty. We played well most of the game. We’ll look at the film and see what we need to do differently for Game 2.”

Phoenix will certainly do a thorough investigation of what it can do to limit Doncic’s output.

The 23-year-old superstar raised his career playoff average to 33.4 points in just 17 games. The mixing and matching of defenders on him in Game 1 didn’t lasso him in the least.

That means Suns coach Monty Williams will look to dig deeper into the bag of tracks for Game 2.

“Anytime a guy has 45, you look at that number and you don’t like it, but I look at their assist numbers,” Williams said. “They only had 16. So, (Maxi) Kleber hit some 3s, but for the most part, nobody else got going the way that they’re capable of.”

The Mavericks were 16 of 39 from 3-point range, with Kleber (19 points) making 5 of 8 and Doncic sinking 4 of 11.

Phoenix made 11 of 28 from behind the arc but stepped up big at the free-throw line, making all 18 attempts. The Suns were 8 of 8 in the final 47.3 seconds to thwart the Dallas comeback bid.

–Field Level Media

Miami Heat guard Kyle Lowry will not play in Game 2 on Wednesday night against the Philadelphia 76ers due to a lingering hamstring injury.

The six-time All-Star has not played since April 22 when he suffered the injury in Game 3 of Miami’s first-round series against the Atlanta Hawks.

The top-seeded Heat defeated the visiting Sixers 106-92 in Game 1 of the Eastern Conference semifinal series on Monday.

The Heat also announced Tuesday that forwards Jimmy Butler (knee) and Markieff Morris (illness) have been removed from the injury report, although Butler missed Tuesday’s practice with an excused absence.

Five Miami players are listed as questionable for Game 2: sixth man Tyler Herro (ankle), forwards P.J. Tucker (calf), Max Strus (hamstring) and Caleb Martin (ankle), and guard Gabe Vincent (knee).

–Field Level Media

Two former high school teammates are squarely in the spotlight as the Golden State Warriors and host Memphis Grizzlies prepare for Game 2 of their Western Conference semifinal series on Tuesday night.

Jordan Poole scored 31 points for the Warriors in their 117-116 victory in the best-of-seven series opener Sunday, while his former Indiana prep teammate at La Lumiere School, Jaren Jackson Jr., poured in 33 points for the Grizzlies.

Poole, who exploded onto the postseason scene with 30 points as a starter in his playoff debut against Denver last month, was even better in his first postseason reserve role, padding his team-high point total with nine assists and eight rebounds.

At age 22, Poole became the youngest Warrior ever to score 30 or more points in a conference semifinal Game 1.

Ja Morant edged Jackson with 34 points, the third-most ever by any player 22 or younger in the opening game of a conference semifinal. But Morant couldn’t convert a buzzer-beating driving layup that could have flipped the final score in Memphis’ favor.

“I missed a layup I normally make all the time,” Morant admitted after finishing with 10 assists and nine rebounds. “Onto the next (game).”

After losing the season series 3-1 and finishing three games behind Memphis in the duel for the No. 2 seed in the Western playoffs, the Warriors threw the Grizzlies a bit of a curve in Game 1 by bringing Poole off the bench.

He responded brilliantly, including shooting a team-best 5 of 10 from 3-point distance.

While his teammates applauded his unselfishness, as evidenced by the nine assists, Poole credited Stephen Curry (24 points) and Klay Thompson (15 points).

“Being able to put the defense in a lot of rotations, the way that they’re trying to guard us, it’s going to be really hard to guard all three of us the same way when we’re out there together,” Poole observed. “It’s just being able to make the right play, and get these other guys good looks.”

Jackson was even more deadly than his old high-school pal from beyond the 3-point arc, burying 6 of 9.

And like Poole, there was much more to his game than just long-range shooting. He also retrieved six offensive rebounds as part of a 10-board game that completed a double-double.

In the end, even with Warriors defensive ace Draymond Green having been ejected for a flagrant foul on Brandon Clarke in the second quarter, Memphis came up short in a Game 1. That also was the scenario in the first round against the Minnesota Timberwolves.

Grizzlies coach Taylor Jenkins left the arena Sunday expecting the same type of rebound that saw his team win four of the next five games against Minnesota.

“Do what we’ve done all season,” he said of the plan moving forward. “Rest. Recover. Watch the film. Get better and come out and compete hard (in Game 2).”

The Warriors are 2.0-point favorites ahead of Game 2 at BetRivers and DraftKings and 1.5-point favorites at BetMGM, where the line has shifted from 2.5 with Golden State backed by 64 percent of the spread handle. Golden State has also drawn 58 percent of the spread handle at DraftKings, but it’s Minnesota that has been supported by 77 percent at BetRivers.

Oddsmakers are expecting a high-scoring game, with all three sportsbooks setting the Over/Under market at 227.5 points. Bettors have still backed the Over with 63 percent of the handle at BetMGM and 62 percent at DraftKings, while the Under has drawn 73 percent of the action at BetRivers.

–Field Level Media