By Eurohoops team/ info@eurohoops.net
Domantas Sabonis did something very rare in NBA history last night with a triple-double of 19 points, 16 assists and 15 rebounds to lead the Sacramento Kings past the Houston Rockets 139 – 114.
Per Statsmuse, Sabonis became just the third center to register a 15-15-15 line after Wilt Chamberlain and Nikola Jokic. The Lithuanian big man also had two steals and two blocks for an overall production that the NBA hadn’t seen since a 15-15-15-2-2 game by Larry Bird in 1976.
“The triple-double he got, the way he got it… that’s to me absolutely amazing,” Kings coach Larry Brown said after the game.
On the other end, Alperen Sengun had 14 points, seven assists and six rebounds for the Rockets that couldn’t keep up with the Kings’ fiery offense.
In Detroit, another Lithuanian big man imposed his will on the floor in an emphatic fashion. Jonas Valanciunas produced 33 points (on 12-15 shots) and 16 rebounds as the New Orleans Pelicans beat the Detroit Pistons 116 – 110.
“JV had a monster game,” Pelicans coach Willie Green said. “He dominated in the post and he dominated on the boards and we needed every point and every rebound.”
Bojan Bogdanovic scored 22 points for the struggling Pistons, now 12-34.
Lauri Markkanen has been an offensive beast for the Utah Jazz this season but it was his defense that saved the day for his team against the Orlando Magic. With five seconds remaining and the Jazz up by three, the Finnish forward blocked Franz Wagner’s 3-point attempt to tie the score en route to a 112 – 108 win.
Markkanen had some problems connecting to the basket with 4-13 from the field but made the most out of his free throws (17-21) to finish wtih 28 points, along with 12 rebounds.
Wagner had strong night overall with 26 points and five rebounds. His brother Moe put on 11 points while Paolo Banchero scored 19.
The rest of Friday’s results and notable Euro performers:
Indiana Pacers – Atlanta Hawks 113 – 111
Washington Wizards – New York Knicks 108 – 112 (Kristaps Porzingis 21 points – Isaiah Hartenstein eight points, seven rebounds)
San Antonio Spurs – Golden State Warriors 113 – 144 (Jakob Poeltl eight points, 10 rebounds, eight assists)
Oklahoma City Thunder – Chicago Bulls 124 – 110 (Nikola Vucevic 19 points, 11 rebounds)
Minesotta Timberwolves – Phoenix Suns 121 – 116 (Rudy Gobert four points, 12 rebounds, four steals)
Los Angeles Clippers – Denver Nuggets 103 – 115