CNN —
Luka Dončić scored a historic triple-double in the Dallas Mavericks’ thrilling 126-121 overtime win over the New York Knicks on Tuesday.
The 23-year-old recorded a career-high 60 points and a career-high 21 rebounds with 10 assists, helping the Mavericks come out of nine points with just 33 seconds of regular time left.
It’s the first time in NBA history that a player has reached that stat line.
“I’m tired as hell,” said Dončić after the game. “I need a recovery beer.”
Over the past 20 seasons, all 13,884 NBA teams who lost the game by at least nine points and have 35 seconds or less left, according to ESPN.
However, in a dramatic ending, Dončić intentionally missed a free throw and then secured the rebound before scoring the putback to level the game and force overtime.
The Slovenia star scored 10 points in the last minute of regular time and added seven more in extra time to complete the highly unlikely win.
Dončić is also the only other player in NBA history aside from James Harden to hit a 60-point triple-double and is only the sixth player to have six or more 40-points, behind Oscar Robertson, Harden, Russell Westbrook – Triple-double scored. Wilt Chamberlain and LeBron James.
“We just saw it on the screen,” Dončić said of his chance to score. “We watched NBA TV. I mean, it’s just amazing to be in those comparisons and just to be with these guys, no matter the stage. It’s amazing to me.”
Dončić’s 60 points also set a new franchise record for Dallas, surpassing the 53 points Dirk Nowitzki scored against Houston in 2004.
“As he grows older, his birthday comes here in the new year. I think he’s seen it all at 23,” Mavericks head coach Jason Kidd said of Dončić’s leadership. “But only his willingness to win is at a very high level – and you could see that tonight.
“Things weren’t going well. Give the Knicks credit, they’ve done a lot of threesomes we didn’t think were possible. They played harder. We were 10 behind. We were in that position earlier in the season if you’re talking about giving up a lead or giving up a game like this.
“Just being able to stick together and trust, Luka played a big part in that. He was never discouraged that the game was over. As you can see he takes up full field, we had a big jump ball. We learned a lot from our defeats in tight games like this.”
The Mavericks are improving to 19-16 on the season and climbing to sixth in the Western Conference, while the Knicks have now lost four straight and are sixth in the East.