Getty Images Kristaps Porzingis #6 of the Dallas Mavericks
Last night the Dallas Mavericks earned a huge victory as they defeated the Milwaukee Bucks, the current Eastern Conference leaders, 120-116. The team also reached this feat without their superstar player, Luka Doncic as he is currently out with an ankle injury. The Mavericks snatched the Bucks 18-game win streak and are the first team in NBA history to have snapped a single-season win streak of 15-plus games without its leading scorer, according to Elias Sports Bureau data.
The Mavericks also recently beat the Los Angeles Lakers on the road, 114-100 on Dec. 1. Now, the Mavs have beat both Conference leaders and are the only team so far this season to have done so. The Lakers and Bucks still lead their respective conference with the Lakers leading the league, 24-3 and the Bucks trailing them, 24-4.
Mavericks vs. Bucks
The Mavericks are currently missing their star player as Doncic is out with an ankle sprain that he suffered on Saturday against the Miami Heat. According to CBS Sports, Doncic’s X-rays came back negative and was diagnosed with a moderate ankle sprain.
“He is responding well to treatment,” Mavericks’ head coach Rick Carlisle said according to Malika Andrews of ESPN. “He is progressing well.”
Luka left the game after suffering an ankle injury.
Hope he’s alright 🙏
Luka-less Mavs still managed to edge over the Bucks as they came out hungry from the start of tip-off in last night’s game. They earned a 14-point lead by the end of the first quarter. The Bucks quickly answered back and decreased their deficit to just three points, 59-56. In the fourth quarter the Mavs earned a 15-point lead but with 3:13 left in the game, the Bucks went on a 21-9 run. Reigning MVP Giannis Antetokounmpo also drew a foul with 5.2 seconds remaining decreasing the deficit yet again to just three points. Unfortunately for the Bucks, they were unable to come up on top and lost the game.
“It was kind of unnecessary,” Kristaps Porzingis said after the game per ESPN. “We should have finished the game a little bit earlier. It was a little bit scary, but at the end, we got the win.”
Porzingis led Dallas with 26 points, four assists and 12 boards.
Dallas Mavericks vs. Los Angeles Lakers
Getty ImagesLeBron James #23 of the Los Angeles Lakers against the Dallas Mavericks
The Dallas Mavericks are on a roll as they also snapped the Lakers 10-game winning stretch on Dec. 1, 114-100. The Lakers led at the half by three points, 62-59. To start the third, the Mavericks clapped back and went on a 22-5 run and earned a lead by the start of the fourth quarter, 94-79. The Lakers were unable to climb back. They did outscore the Mavericks by one-point in the fourth but that wasn’t enough to earn a victory as they ultimately fell short to the Mavericks.
Doncic was a beast and led the team with 27 points, 10 assists and nine boards. Anthony Davis led the Lakers with 27 points, two assists and 10 rebounds while LeBron James trailed him posting 25 points, eight assists and nine rebounds. Currently, Doncic who is only in his second year of playing in the NBA, is averaging 29.3 points, 9.6 boards and 8.9 assists a game on 48.1% shooting from the field and 32.6% from beyond the arc.
The Dallas Mavericks play against the Boston Celtics tomorrow at 6:30 p.m. PST.