SACRAMENTO (AP) – Luka Doncic scored 26 of his 28 points in the first half and the Dallas Mavericks beat the Sacramento Kings 132-96 yesterday for their fifth straight win.
Doncic added 11 rebounds, six assists and three steals as the Mavericks moved into sixth place in the Western Conference, a game ahead of the Kings, with both teams trying to avoid the play-in tournament.
“I thought just the plays for one another, on both ends, offensively and defensively, was at a high,” Dallas coach Jason Kidd said. We’re just trying to take what’s in front of us and play the game that’s in front of us, take the one possession that’s in front of us to get better.”
Kyrie Irving had 24 points and eight assists, and Tim Hardaway Jr added 22 points and six assists off the bench. PJ Washington had 14 points and a season-high 13 rebounds.
“We hit shots tonight,” Washington said. “We rebounded well. We played great defence for 48 minutes. So I’m happy.” De’Aaron Fox led the Kings with 18 points but was held to 6-of-18 shooting. Keegan Murray added 17.
Domantas Sabonis had 12 points, 11 rebounds and nine assists for his 55th straight double-double, tying Jerry Lucas for the longest streak in franchise history.
“(Fox and Sabonis) are All-Stars,” Kidd said. “We just tried to make it tough on them. It’s a group effort, everybody. It’s not just one person.”
