The Phoenix Suns beat the Dallas Mavericks 129-109 in Game 2 of the NBA Western Conference semifinals at Footprint Center in Phoenix on Wednesday to lead 2-0 in the series.

Chris Paul and Devin Booker combined 41 points in the second half for the Suns to dominate the game during this period of the game. The Suns led 93-83 when the fourth quarter began. In only five minutes, Paul shot 6-of-6 from the field, including three in the middle range, to score 14 points and extend the lead to 15 points (108-93) for the Suns.

Booker's explosion came right after Paul. From 6:06 when Booker was sent the floor to 4:13, he made three straight triples, killing the game once and for all for the Suns. In fact, Booker could have scored more than 12 points in the third quarter if he hadn't been called the fourth personal foul and had to go to the bench for safety.

Paul and Booker took over the scoring duty at the best timing. The Suns began Wednesday's game in the regular way by feeding the big men first. Their starting center Deandre Ayton had nine points in the first quarter but then fell into foul trouble in the second and third quarters. As a result, he played 19 less minutes on Wednesday night.

Ayton's usual substitute JaVale McGee suffered the same problem as he committed five personal fouls in less than 10 minutes. The Suns had no choice but to have Bismack Biyombo play much longer than he usually does. He performed better than expected, especially on the defensive front, but its very limited that Biyombo contributes offensively.

But defense was key to the Suns' victory on Wednesday night. The Mavericks drained 17 triples, four more than the opponents did, in Wednesday's game. In many occasions, the Suns' defenders already rotated to deflect the shooting, but the Mavericks just made those unreasonable shots.

However, the Mavericks were not so lucky in the more crowded and more physical paint, especially when they had no size advantage. The Suns invested more people and attention to shut down the opponents in this area. As a result, the Mavericks shot 16-28 to get only 32 points in the paint, 18 fewer than the Suns. As the game went on, the Mavericks found it increasingly difficult to even pass the ball to the paint because of the Suns' defense.

As for Luka Doncic, the Suns allowed him to shoot outside without double-teaming, but if Doncic wanted to approach the hoop or pass to teammates inside, the defensive pressure on him would grow much heavier every step he took toward the paint. As a result, Doncic shot 5-for-10 at the 3-point line and scored 35 points. But he only took two shots under the rim. His seven assists came along with seven turnovers as well.

The Mavericks' situation is much worse than the 2-0 deficit seems. Most of their winning formulas against the Utah Jazz in the first round ceased to work against the Suns. They kept taking hits by the opponents' big men; Jalen Brunson, the team's second playmaker, wasted too much energy and too many fouls on perimeter defense instead of offering Doncic support on offense; unlike the Jazz simplistic offense, the Suns' ball movement was smarter and more complicated.

Judging by the results and process of the first two games of the West semifinals, the Suns still have some space to improve their game despite two big wins. By contrast, the Mavericks barely have any tricks left up their sleeves.

Game 3 will take place at American Airlines Center in Dallas on Friday.