Luka Doncic “outclutched” LeBron James as the Dallas Mavericks conjured a remarkable double-overtime victory over the Los Angeles Lakers in a captivating, fiery NBA clash that, at times, threatened to boil over.
Trailing by six points with three and a half minutes to play, the Lakers went on a 12-3 run to take a 101-98 lead with 11.1 seconds left in regular time – an impressive effort in itself considering they trailed by 19 points late in the first quarter.
Enter Doncic, who nailed a step-back three-pointer to send the game into overtime, before pulling off a similar shot in the first overtime period to level the scores again and force double OT.
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Doncic, Spencer Dinwiddie and Christian Wood then all made crucial plays in the final five-minute period to secure a hard-fought 119-115 win over the Lakers.
Doncic finished with 35 points – including 4-9 from three-point territory – to go with 14 rebounds and 13 assists in his 56th career triple-double. As per ESPN’s stats team, Doncic became the first player aged 23 or younger to average 40 points over a 10-game span since Michael Jordan in 1986.
Meanwhile, LeBron only made two free throws, while he went 0-4 from the field and was blocked twice, during the two overtime periods. He went 0-7 from beyond the arc for the entire game.
“It was very physical,” Doncic told NBA on TNT post-game. “Two overtimes is a lot of minutes. We had to stay focused.
“Energy was a little low after two overtimes, but we came through. A win is a win.”
James still had 24 points, 16 rebounds and nine assists, while Russell Westbrook had a season-high 28 points off the bench for the Lakers. But ultimately it was the second-straight loss for the Lakers after winning their previous five.
Amid the see-sawing battle late in the game were several contentious referee calls.
With scores tied at 101-101, Lakers small forward Troy Brown Jr had a game-winning three attempt on the buzzer. It came up well short – but only after it appeared Tim Hardaway Jr had made contact with his shooting hand. No foul was called.
“It is what it is,” Brown Jr said of the no foul call to reporters post-game.
“At the end of the day, that’s where I stand on it. I’m not deciding … At the end of the day they’re human.
“I thought there was contact, they don’t call it. It is what it is. It’s not my job to ref.”
James at the end of the first overtime argued with the referee as he believed a foul should’ve been called against Christian Wood after the Lakers superstar’s game-winning reverse attempt got stopped at the rim. TNT commentators, though, believed James lost control of the ball and no foul was committed by Wood.
Minutes earlier, Westbrook was called for a flagrant foul after making contact with Doncic while on defence. As Westbrook hit the floor, Doncic regained his balance and had heated words with Westbrook, prompting teammates, coaches and referees to keep the two stars separated.
“The officials have been in the crosshairs all game,” commentator Brian Anderson said.
Mavericks owner Mark Cuban wasn’t happy with the lack of calls in Doncic’s favour, tweeting mid-game: “(Commentator) Stan Van Gundy is absolutely right. Worst officiated game. Luka gets no respect. Unreal.”
The Mavericks next travel to Portland to take on the Trail Blazers. while the Lakers host the 76ers.