NBA: Luka Doncic fills stat sheet, leads Mavericks over Wolves
FILE – Luka Doncic #77 of the Dallas Mavericks dribbles the ball in the key while Jaden McDaniels #3 of the Minnesota Timberwolves defends in the second quarter of the game at Target Center on December 19, 2022 in Minneapolis, Minnesota. David Berding/Getty Images/AFP
Luka Doncic collected 25 points, 10 assists, nine rebounds and three steals to lift the Dallas Mavericks to a 104-99 victory over the Minnesota Timberwolves on Wednesday in Minneapolis.
Doncic made 8 of 16 shots from the floor after being limited to a season-low 19 points in Dallas’ 116-106 setback to Minnesota on Monday. His night was cut short in that contest after being ejected in the third quarter.
Tim Hardaway Jr. and Spencer Dinwiddie each drained four 3-pointers on Wednesday to finish with 21 and 19 points, respectively. Christian Wood scored 12 points and Dwight Powell added 10 for the Mavericks, who have won three of their last eight games overall and four of 15 on the road this season.
🐂🔒 bucketsssss pic.twitter.com/ce1JueqXOp
— Dallas Mavericks (@dallasmavs) December 22, 2022
Earlier on Wednesday, Dallas coach Jason Kidd was fined $25,000 by the NBA for coming onto the court to confront and direct inappropriate language toward a game official during Monday’s game. He was assessed two technical fouls and ejected from the contest.
Minnesota’s Anthony Edwards scored 23 points to fluster the Mavericks for the second time in three days. He collected 27 points, 13 rebounds and nine assists on Monday.
Rudy Gobert recorded 19 points and 15 rebounds in his return from a three-game absence due to an ankle injury.
Luka is like that 😱
⭐➡️ https://t.co/v2OE03FpfW pic.twitter.com/1K3oZcQGF2
— Dallas Mavericks (@dallasmavs) December 22, 2022
Austin Rivers had 21 points for the Timberwolves, who saw their three-game winning streak come to a halt.
Hardaway made a free throw to push the Mavericks’ advantage to 100-94 with 32.7 seconds left. Jaden McDaniels sank a 3-pointer on the next possession to halve the deficit before Doncic and Dinwiddie sealed the win by each converting two shots from the free-throw line.
The Timberwolves were nursing an 85-82 lead before the Mavericks started to heat up from 3-point range. Hardaway and Reggie Bullock each sank a pair of treys and Dinwiddie also converted from beyond the arc to give Dallas a 97-89 lead with four minutes remaining in the fourth quarter.
Gobert’s dunk and Rivers’ 3-pointer trimmed the deficit before Doncic drained a mid-range jumper to halt the momentum.
