Lyon finished with figures of 3-48 off 17 overs at the end of the day
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Nathan Lyon took three wickets to help Australia retain the upper hand and ensure South Africa remained on the back foot in Adelaide.
The Proteas were looking threatening at one point, but thanks to Lyon and Mitchell Starc, they only hold a slim 70-run lead with four wickets in hand going into the penultimate day of the match.
Starting off the day on 307/6, Australia added 20 runs to their overnight score before Usman Khawaja, who made a spectacular hundred on the second day, was trapped lbw off the bowling of Vernon Philander for 145, which came off 308 balls, which included 12 boundaries.
Starc, meanwhile, took the attack to South Africa and went on to register his half-century before being caught and bowled by Kagiso Rabada shortly after for 53 off 91 deliveries, which included five boundaries and a six.
Starc scored his seventh Test fifty
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Following Starc’s dismissal, Lyon and Jackson Bird fell in quick succession to debutant Tabraiz Shamsi and Rabada for 13 and six runs respectively as Australia were bowled out for 383.
Rabada and Kyle Abbott picked up three wickets apiece, while Philander snapped up two and Shamsi chipped in with one.
Trailing by 383 runs, South Africa got off to a horrendous start as opener Dean Elgar was sent packing by Starc on the fifth ball of the innings for a duck.
This marked the eighth time that Starc had taken a wicket in the first over of a Test innings, which is the joint-highest since his debut in December 2011. The other two bowlers tied with Starc are South Africa’s Dale Steyn and England’s James Anderson.
The Proteas did well to recover from their early setback as Hashim Amla and Stephen Cook put together an 81-run partnership before Amla was caught behind off the bowling of Josh Hazlewood for 45.
Cook and JP Duminy kept the runs flowing with a 49-run stand, during which Cook surpassed his fifty, before Duminy was clean bowled by Lyon for 26.
South Africa stand-in captain Faf du Plessis, who made a gutsy century on the first day, failed to have an impact this time around as he was dismissed by Starc for 12.
Temba Bavuma became Lyon’s second victim in the off-spinner’s penultimate over of the day, while Abbott was given out lbw off the bowling of Lyon on the third ball of the final over. With Lyon having struck twice right at the end of the day, wicketkeeper Quinton de Kock saw off the last three balls before stumps was called.
Cook finished on 81 off 199 balls, which included seven boundaries, while De Kock has yet to get off the mark.
Cook struck seven boundaries during his unbeaten knock of 81
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Lyon was the most successful bowler with three wickets, while Starc took two and Hazlewood claimed one.
South Africa ended day three on 194/6 and will continue batting on Sunday at 14:00 local time or 03:30 GMT.