Luca Doncic | Photo: Dallas Mavericks
Four games took place last night in the National Basketball Association (NBA). In one of them Davis Bertans and Dallas Mavericks with 100:105 recognized the superiority of the Toronto Raptors.
This was Dallas’ sixth loss in seven games on the road this season. For the first time since his recovery, Bertans hasn’t had the chance to take the field. His help could have been useful late in the game, when the Mavericks could have tied the score at 100-103, but neither Dallas would have taken the lead and Dorian Finney-Smith made a mistake, allowing the hosts to celebrate the victory.
Fred Vanvleet and Ogugua “OG” Anunoby had strong performances for the Raptors, who each scored 26 points. They were supported by Chris Boucher, who came into the game off the bench and hit a double-double, which was 22 points and 13 rebounds. It should be noted that two of the team leaders – Pascal Siakam and Scotty Barnes – did not help the Toronto team in this match.
“Mavericks” was not saved from bankruptcy by Luka Doncic, who stood out with 24 points, seven rebounds and nine assists. The aforementioned Finney-Smith scored 16 points and Spencer Dinwiddie 15 points.
In another game, LeBron James confirmed his lead status, scoring 39 points and grabbing 11 rebounds to help the Los Angeles Lakers beat the San Antonio Spurs 143-138. Anthony Davis did not help the Lakers team in this match, and several other players enjoyed success in his absence: Dennis Schroeder scored 21 points, Lonnie Walker with 19, Austin Reaves with 16 and Venjen Gabriel with 15 points.
The fact that three basketball players scored more than 20 points – Keldon Johnson (26), Tre Jones (23) and Devin Vassell (20) – didn’t help the Spurs win. Both teams also attacked well from distance. The “Spurs” made 18 long shots, while the “Lakers” basketball players hit 17 “threes”.
Houston “Rockets” managed one of the rare wins this season, beating Oklahoma City “Thunder” 118-105 at home. A great matchup between last year’s second overall pick Jalen Green and young Turkish talent Alperin Shengun – while Green was efficient (28 points) and close to a double-double (nine assists), Shengun did it in a very impressive way , scoring 21 points and grabbing 19 rebounds. He also assisted his teammates seven times and blocked two shots. As usual, Shay Gilges-Alexander had an excellent performance in the ranks of “Thunder” – 32 points.
In the final game of the night, the Phoenix “Dogs” were able to hold on for a dramatic victory, defeating the Utah “Jazz” 113-112. With Chris Paul still out, DeAndre Ayton and Devin Booker led the way with 29 and 27 points, respectively. Ayton, however, grabbed 21 rebounds, allowing his first career 20+20 game. The performance of the two defenders of the starting lineup, Jordan Clarkson (22 points) and Colin Sexton (20 points), did not save “Jazz” from defeat.
