Luka Doncic’s triple-double carries Mavericks past Raptors

NBA

Luka Doncic had 30 points, 11 rebounds and 16 assists and the visiting Dallas Mavericks defeated the Toronto Raptors 136-125 Wednesday night.

It was the 11th triple-double of the season and the 67th of his career for Doncic, who turned 25 on Wednesday.

Kyrie Irving added 29 points – 15 in the fourth quarter – for the Mavericks, who have won eight of their past 10.

P.J. Washington contributed 23 points, Tim Hardaway Jr. scored 16 points and Daniel Gafford had 13 points. Dereck Lively II had nine points and five blocks.

The Mavericks were coming back from a 121-119 loss on a 59-foot buzzer beater to the Cleveland Cavaliers on Tuesday.

Scottie Barnes had 19 points and 11 rebounds for the Raptors, who had their three-game winning streak end. RJ Barrett added 26 points, while Immanuel Quickley scored 28 points. Gary Trent Jr. scored 11 points, Kelly Olynyk added 13 and Jakob Poeltl had 16 points.

Dallas took a 14-point lead into the fourth quarter. Quickley’s jumper cut the margin to 12 with 6:34 to play. Doncic’s putback layup had the lead at 13 with 2:41 left.

Washington scored 13 points to help Dallas to a 36-34 lead after one quarter.

Doncic made a jumper and a free throw to give Dallas a seven-point lead with 9:18 to play in the second quarter. Toronto answered with an 11-2 run to take a two-point lead. Dallas led by four when Hardaway hit a 3-pointer with 4:34 to play in the half. Barrett converted his own steal into a layup and a free throw with 58 seconds left to complete the first half scoring and give Toronto a 67-66 lead.

Toronto shot 43.6 percent (24-for-55) from the field in the first half led by Quickley’s 14 points. Dallas shot 51.1 percent (23-for-45) from the field in the half with Doncic and Hardaway each scoring 14 points.

Dallas used a 9-0 surge to open a five-point lead. Dante Exum’s 3-pointer gave Dallas an eight-point lead with 4:34 left in the third quarter. Gafford’s dunk and free throw put Dallas up by 10 with 2:57 remaining. Doncic scored four straight points to bump the lead to 14. Dallas led 106-92 after three quarters.

–Field Level Media/Reuters