The Dallas Mavericks improved to 35-28 on the season Thursday night with a 114-108 victory over the Miami Heat.
The biggest story to come out of the game, though was Mavericks guard Luka Dončić putting up a record-setting performance.
Dončić finished the evening with 35 points, 11 rebounds, and 11 assists, giving him his fifth straight triple-double and fourth straight in which he scored 35 or more points, breaking the NBA record.
Luka Doncic has his fourth straight 35-point triple-double, the longest such streak in NBA history.
— Tim MacMahon (@espn_macmahon) March 8, 2024
In his first four games played in March, Dončić is averaging 38.0 points, 11.0 rebounds, and 10.7 assists per game.
Against the Heat, Dončić was locked in all night, including an incredible contested three-point make in the fourth quarter with the shot clock winding down to put the Mavericks back on top.
Luka… Ridiculous! 🏀🔥pic.twitter.com/yhbeebwhd6
— The Comeback (@thecomeback) March 8, 2024
Thursday night’s triple-double was Dončić’s 15th of the season, third-best in the league behind Sacramento Kings center Domantas Sabonis (22) and Denver Nuggets center Nikola Jokić (19). It also marked the 70th triple-double of Dončić’s career, making him the ninth player in NBA history to eclipse that number.
If Dončić gets a 30+ point triple-double in his next game, he will also hold that record with six in a row. As of now, he and Russell Westbrook (2017) are the only players in league history to record five straight 30+ point triple-doubles.
The win also brought Dallas within one game of passing the Kings for the seventh seed in the Western Conference, as the Mavericks look to avoid the Play-In Tournament.
