Doncic, Porzingis fuel Mavs win over Pelicans

Luka Doncic (#77) of the Dallas Mavericks takes a shot against Zion Williamson #1 of the New Orleans Pelicans in the fourth quarter at American Airlines Center on February 12, 2021 in Dallas, Texas.  (Ronald Martinez/Getty Images/AFP)

LOS ANGELES – Luka Doncic scored a career-high 46 points to propel the Dallas Mavericks to a fourth straight NBA victory on Friday, 143-130 over the New Orleans Pelicans.

Doncic added 12 assists and eight rebounds — his seventh career game with at least 40 points and 10 assists.

Kristaps Porzingis added 36 points for the Mavericks, who withstood a career-best 36 points from Pelicans star Zion Williamson.

💫 Career-high 46 PTS for @luka7doncic
💫 8 REB, 12 AST, 5 3PM
💫 4 straight @dallasmavs wins

Luka. Magic. pic.twitter.com/alx8VWXcCZ

— NBA (@NBA) February 13, 2021

The scoring extravaganza included a franchise-record 25 three-pointers from the Mavericks, who took a 69-65 lead into the second half — in which they never trailed.

Doncic connected on five of eight from three-point range, while Porzingis hit eight of 13 from beyond the arc.

Career-high 8 threes for KP! 💦@kporzee: 36 PTS | @dallasmavs W pic.twitter.com/hjlqAhCVnq

— NBA (@NBA) February 13, 2021

Williamson was a perfect 10-for-10 from the field in the first half and 14-of-15 overall — his lone miss a three-point attempt in the third quarter.

“Luka was phenomenal,” Mavs coach Rick Carlisle said. “KP was phenomenal. Williamson was ridiculous.”

Dallas pushed the lead to double digits midway through the third, connecting on 13 of their first 15 shots after the break.

The Mavs led by as many as 16 in the fourth quarter.

Carlisle thought the contest was a “pillow fight” defensively, but he couldn’t help but be impressed by the explosive offense on display.

“The shotmaking was phenomenal, by both teams,” he said. “We were able to get a little bit of traction defensively in the fourth, which helped us push the lead up a little bit.”

gsg