Luka Doncic recorded his 11th triple-double of the season on his 25th birthday with 30 points, 16 assists, and 11 rebounds, and Kyrie Irving scored 15 of his 29 points in the fourth quarter for Dallas. -The Mavericks defeated the Toronto Raptors 136-125 on Wednesday. night.
Doncic, the NBA's leading scorer, became the first player in league history to record a 30-point triple-double on his birthday. He has scored 25 or more points in nine consecutive games, and has exceeded 40 points twice during that span.
“Just a normal game, a triple-double,” Dallas manager Jason Kidd said. “He was really good. I think being 25 years old means he's still going to be a great player as he gets older here.”
Doncic made 11-of-23 and just 1-of-8 3-pointers, ending Dallas' two-game slide. He went 7-for-9 from the foul line.
Asked if he considers turning 25 a milestone birthday, Doncic first asked for an explanation of the term before dismissing the idea.
“No because I feel like I'm 40 years old,” the Slovenian star said with a smile.
Doncic and Irving scored 22 points in the first half and combined for 37 points after the break.
“Kyrie and Luka, they stayed very calm and made the right plays in important moments,” Raptors manager Darko Rajkovic said.
For Dallas, PJ Washington Jr. scored 23 points and Tim Hardaway Jr. added 16 points. Daniel Gafford scored 13 points and the Mavericks bounced back from Tuesday's blowout loss to Cleveland as Max Strus hit a 59-foot shot as time expired to give the Cavaliers a 121-119 victory.
Doncic said he never had time to think about that loss.
“Zero,” he said. “That's the beauty of the NBA. You get another chance the next day.”
For the Raptors, Scottie Barnes had 19 points and 11 rebounds for the fifth straight double-double, Immanuel Quickley had a season-high 28 points, and RJ Barrett had 26 points, but the Raptors lost for the first time in four games since the All-Star break. .
Jakob Poeltl had 16 points, Kelly Olynyk had 13 points and Gary Trent Jr. had 11 points, but Toronto was unable to win its third straight against the Mavericks.
Doncic had six of Dallas' eight assists in the first quarter, including Stunning no-look, over-the-shoulder pass to Hardaway For a wide open 3-point shot. Washington scored 13 points in the first inning, and the Mavs led 36-34 after that.
“I think he's special, just the way he breaks up games and the way he passes the ball,” Washington said of Doncic.
Doncic had eight points in the second and Hardaway added nine for Dallas, but Quickley had 10 points for Toronto as the Raptors led 67-66 at the half.
Dallas turned the ball over 10 times in the first half, giving the Raptors 15 points, but the Mavericks only had two miscues in the third game. Doncic scored 11 points in the quarter and added six assists, giving Dallas a 106-92 lead entering the fourth quarter.
The Mavericks played without big man Maxi Kleber, who was sitting with a dislocated right little finger and a broken nose. Dallas guard Dante Exum (right knee) played for the first time since Jan. 26 against Atlanta, ending a 13-game absence.
“I thought his pace, his ability to run the offense and get Timmy and Kai shots was seamless,” Kidd said of Exum. “Looks like he's gone.”
Toronto forward Chris Boucher missed the game due to illness.
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Mavericks: Visit Boston on Friday.
Raptors: Host Golden State on Friday.
