With 39 points, 12 rebounds, and 10 assists from Luka Doncic, the Dallas Mavericks defeated the Charlotte Hornets 130-104 on Tuesday night to extend their winning streak to 17 games as they continued their ascent towards the postseason.
The Mavericks jumped out to a 36-14 lead in the first quarter behind the scoring prodigy, who finished with 21 points and five 3-pointers. For his 21st triple-double of the year and 77th career, Doncic completed 8 of 17 from beyond the arc, tying James Harden for seventh place all-time. Along with that, he broke Mark Aguirre’s 1983–84 mark of 2,330 points in a season to set a new record for the Mavericks club.
It means a great deal, Doncic stated. “I was drafted by this franchise, and they provided me with the keys.” I am just happy to be here.
Doncic scores 33.9 points per game on average.
“What Luka has accomplished is amazing,” Mavericks head coach Jason Kidd remarked. “He is going to change the NBA’s and the Mavericks’ record books.” It is amazing that he passed Mark considering how legendary Mark is to the Mavs. It displays Luka’s accomplishments and his annual improvement.
The Mavericks (49-30) are seventh in the Western Conference. Daniel Gafford completed 12 of 12 from the field for 26 points, and Kyrie Irving added 18 points, nine assists, and eight rebounds.
The Hornets concluded an eight-game homestand that lasted the entirety of the franchise with a 2–6 record, led by 22 points from Miles Bridges and 21 from Brandon Miller.
Doncic ruled the opening quarter before Irving took over, giving Dallas a 22-point advantage at the break.
After being acquired by the Hornets in a mid-season trade, P.J. Washington had a difficult time making just one free throw and missing all seven of his shots on his return to Charlotte.
For the majority of the evening, Doncic played with the Hornets, finding openings in the defense to create room for three-pointers and scoring on drives. His best play was not a basket; rather, it was a one-handed alley-oop pass to Gafford.
According to Gafford, “he comes down and gets whatever he wants, night in and night out.”
Kidd described Doncic as “aggressive, he came out and did not wait.” Luka appeared to be having one of those 40-point quarters.
According to Hornets coach Steve Clifford, his team seems uninspired.
“Luka was excellent. In the first quarter, Clifford made five 3-pointers, four of which were presumably simple isos. “We have a hole in our game. We never seemed to truly get into the game, in my opinion. We gave it our best go, but we did not play with quite the same energy as before.
In the fourth quarter, Doncic sent a pass to Gafford for another dunk, initiating a 13-0 run that saw Charlotte cut the advantage to just 11.
With this victory, the Mavericks are virtually guaranteed to escape the play-in round.
Doncic remarked, “We really need some rest.” “Defensively, we are also playing some of the best basketball we have played all season. For us, that holds the key.
With his three 3-pointers against the Hornets, Miller surpassed Saddiq Bey to become the NBA rookie with the fourth-most 3-pointers made in history, with 178 for the season. He is behind Damian Lillard (185), Donovan Mitchell (187) and Keegan Murray (206).
Clifford holding a framed jersey prior to the game. After the season, Clifford, who spent two different stints with the Hornets, will step down.