DALLAS — Cooper Flagg erupted for 45 points as the Dallas Mavericks ended a 14-game home losing streak with a 134-128 win over an injury-depleted Los Angeles Lakers on Sunday night. The victory snapped the Mavericks’ longest string of home losses in 32 years and marked a decisive offensive night for the rookie star.
LeBron James finished with 30 points and 15 assists for the Lakers, who entered the night already clinched for the playoffs but were missing key scorers Luka Dončić and Austin Reaves. The two were sidelined for the remainder of the regular season after sustaining injuries in a lopsided loss at Oklahoma City earlier in the week, leaving Los Angeles shorthanded.
Flagg contributed nine assists and eight rebounds, recording his second straight 40-point performance after scoring 51 two nights earlier. At 19, he became the first teenager to post a 50-point game in the NBA and the first rookie to score 40 or more in consecutive games since Allen Iverson in 1996-97, underlining how quickly he has become a central figure for Dallas.
Luke Kennard produced his first career triple-double, totaling 15 points, a career-high 16 rebounds and 11 assists for Los Angeles. Despite Kennard’s all-around effort and a late second-quarter surge that narrowed a 22-point deficit to six by halftime, the Lakers were unable to complete the comeback and never reclaimed the lead after the early moments of the game.
P.J. Washington Jr. added 15 points for the Mavericks, 13 of which came after halftime, helping Dallas maintain control down the stretch. The win was especially meaningful at home: the streak was the longest at the American Airlines Center since the venue opened 25 years ago, and the franchise’s worst stretch of home defeats since the days of the former Reunion Arena.
The game featured several highlight plays from James, including back-to-back dunks and a powerful alley-oop thrown down off a Kennard feed early in the third quarter, but those bursts weren’t enough to close the gap. Dallas held on in a high-scoring affair, with Flagg’s scoring outburst proving the difference.
Up next
Lakers: Host Oklahoma City on Tuesday.
Mavericks: Visit the Los Angeles Clippers on Tuesday.
