Doncic, Porzingis Lead Dallas Mavericks Past New Orleans Pelicans, 127-123 OT

The Dallas Mavericks defeated New Orleans Pelicans in the most interesting match of the night, 127-123, after overtime. Led by their striking duo Doncic-Porzingis, the Mavs recorded a massive triumph, which keeps them in the race for the fourth spot in the Western Conference.

“Playoff-caliber game,” Rick Carlisle said. “A guts game. Great for us.”

Luka scored seven, and Porzingis added six points in the additional five minutes, holding off the Pelicans, who suffered back-to-back losses in the last 24 hours and are in problems regarding the playoff race.

Doncic and Porzingis delivered 64 points combined, more than half of Mavericks’ scoring result, with the note that the Slovenian superstar recorded a triple-double. It was his 22nd in career, becoming the No.1 in the franchise history. He also became only the fifth player with 10 30-point triple-doubles in one season, joining, Oscar Robertson, Russell Westbrook, James Harden, and Michael Jordan.

✨ Luka Magic x Triple-Double ✨@luka7doncic (30 PTS, 17 REB, 10 AST) becomes the @dallasmavs all-time triple-doubles leader en route to the OT win at home! #MFFL pic.twitter.com/hy5NFHmew6

— NBA (@NBA) March 5, 2020

The reigning rookie of the year had 30 buckets, 17 boards and 10 assists, in 41 minutes, hitting four threes in eleven tries. Meanwhile, Porzingis spent a game-high 45 minutes on the court and had a game-high 34 points. The Unicorn was 14-for-28 from the field, and had 12 boards with fantastic 5 blocks.

Apart from the second sequence, the game was constantly tight, with the teams changing in the lead. During the second period, the home team had an 11-point lead, 45-34, and was looking to break the Pelicans. However, that didn’t happen. New Orleans was back in the third, and from that moment on, the spectators saw one hell of a fight on the floor of the American Airlines Center.

With 1:52 to go, and Brandon Ingram’s points, the guests were up 109-106. But once Seth Curry scored a free throw with 10.6 seconds left, the result was 112-109 for the Mavs. Still, that wasn’t enough for them to win, because Nicolo Melli hit a game-tying three-pointer eight seconds before the end.

Still, there was no chance for them to win in OT.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=X6kZ4U05gKI

Brandon Ingram had 27 buckets for the Pelicans, shooting 11-for-22 from the field. Lonzo Ball had an excellent performance with 25 points, 11 rebounds, and six assists, hitting seven threes in 11 tries.

Zion scored 21, which was his 13th match in a row with 20 or more buckets. Since 1975, only MJ and Blake Griffin had better productivity in his category.

Jrue Holiday added 19 points and 6 boards and assists.

On the other side, the Mavs also had Curry with 21 points off the bench, and six threes in nine attempts.

“Steph, Seth, whoever the hell they are.” Alvin Gentry joked following the game, making a parallel between two brothers who often destroyed his team.

Tim Hardaway Jr. added 18 points.

The Mavericks are now 37-25 and are still in the hunt for the No.4 seed. Right now, Luka and the guys are 3 games behind the Rockets, with Jazz and OKC Thunder ahead of themselves. Mavs play four of their next five games at home, and are in a solid position to close the gap. The first rivals are the Grizzlies, then the Pacers.

On the other side, the Pels are 26-36, and after the recent two losses, they are slowly losing chances to reach the postseason. Grizzlies are five games better, and the Kings and the Blazers are also chasing Memphis, so Alvin Gentry’s boys have to perform some kind of a miracle in the next few matches. They await the Heat on Friday, then have four games on the road, against Minnesota, Sacramento, Jazz and Clippers.