Luka Doncic scores 73 points in Friday night game
Luka Dončić saw Joel Embiid’s 70-point game and raised him three.
The Dallas Mavericks point guard scored a whopping 73 points Friday night against the Atlanta Hawks. It came just days after Embiid, the center for the Philadelphia 76ers, collected 70 points Monday against the San Antonio Spurs.
![Luka Doncic - Figure 1](https://media-cldnry.s-nbcnews.com/image/upload/t_fit-760w,f_auto,q_auto:best/rockcms/2024-01/240126-luka-doncic-dallas-mavericks-wm-712p-19702c.jpg)
Dončić, who has been averaging 33.6 points per game this NBA season, not only outscored Embiid, but also himself and the Mavericks. His 73-point game is his personal best and a team best. Before Friday’s shootout, both of those records sat at 60.
It also put Dončić, 24, in fourth place for the highest-scoring game for a player in NBA history.
The Mavs celebrated the achievement by posting to social media what appears to be an edited photo of Dončić as a child, wearing a version of his current jersey.
Dončić, who is in his sixth season, sunk a three-pointer with 2:58 left in the game, bringing his tally to 70 for the night. Another three-point shot sealed the deal, and the Mavs’ 148-143 win.
Overall, Dončić is tied for fourth place in single-game scoring, behind only Wilt Chamberlain — who holds the record, with 100 points in a 1962 game, and also the third-place spot, with 78 points scored in 1961, and Kobe Bryant, who tallied 81 points in 2006, putting him at second.
Luka Dončić #77 of the Dallas Mavericks shoots the ball during the game against the Atlanta Hawks at State Farm Arena in Atlanta on Friday.Adam Hagy / NBAE via Getty ImagesBesides Dončić, two other players have scored 73 points in a game: Chamberlain, who scored 73 points twice in a single game in 1962, and David Thompson, who achieved the same feat in 1978.
Rebecca Cohen
Rebecca Cohen is a breaking news reporter for NBC News.
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