Source :- PERTH NOW NEWS
Cooper Flagg continued his historic rookie run to end a long Dallas home drought against LeBron James’s depleted Los Angeles Lakers.
The 19-year-old Mavericks star scored 45 points in a 134-128 victory over the Lakers on Sunday (Monday AEST), ending their longest home losing streak in 32 years at 14 games.
James had 30 points and 15 assists for the playoff-bound Lakers, who led for just 13 seconds in the opening minutes of their first game since injuries sidelined Luka Doncic (hamstring) and Austin Reaves (oblique) for the rest of the regular season.
Flagg, who had nine assists and eight rebounds, recorded consecutive 40-point games for the first time, after the No.1 pick scored 51 to become the first NBA teenager with a 50-point outing two nights ago.
He’s the first rookie with back-to-back games scoring at least 40 points since Allen Iverson in the 1996/97 season, offering a source of light to a 25-53 Mavericks side well outside the finals picture.
The 41-year-old James – in his record 23rd season – had back-to-back dunks before the break, then a soaring alley-oop slam from Luke Kennard to get the Lakers within 72-70 early in the third quarter. But LA never got closer.
Elsewhere, in-form Australian guard Josh Giddey sat out Chicago’s 120-110 loss to Phoenix as he manages a hamstring injury.
Former NBL Next Star LaMelo Ball scored 35 points and Miles Bridges added 25 points, eight rebounds and seven assists for the surging Charlotte Hornets, who beat Minnesota 122-108 to edge closer to their first post-season campaign in 10 years.
Oklahoma City Thunder had a season-high points total to rout the Utah Jazz 146-111 and increased their lead over the San Antonio Spurs to three games with four remaining in the race for the Western Conference’s top seed in the playoffs.
Donovan Mitchell scored 23 of his 38 points in the second half, James Harden had 28 points and seven assists and the Cleveland Cavaliers beat the injury-plagued Indiana 117-108.
The playoff-bound Cavaliers (49-29) reduced their magic number for home-court advantage in the first round to one, beating the injury-plagued Pacers 117-108 despite resting their starting frontcourt of Jarrett Allen, Evan Mobley and Sam Merrill.
Indiana (18-60) only had nine players in uniform and were missing their top five scorers.
The Cavaliers are four games clear of Dyson Daniels’ Atlanta, sitting fourth in the Eastern Conference with four games to play. Those sides meet twice this week.
With AP
