Instant Reactions: Mavericks rally past Raptors behind Cooper Flagg and Anthony Davis

The Toronto Raptors couldn’t seem to miss in the first half and led by two at halftime. It looked like the Dallas Mavericks might be headed for a similar result as their first two games of the season.

Raptors forward Scottie Barnes, who finished with 33 points and 11 rebounds, and Brandon Ingram were both shooting efficiently early on.

But Dallas erupted in the third quarter, outscoring the Raptors 39-25 to take a lead it never gave back.

No. 1 overall pick Cooper Flagg had 22 points and four rebounds, leading the Mavericks to a 139-129 win over Toronto.

Flagg energized the crowd in the third quarter with a tomahawk dunk over a Raptors defender, drawing a foul and converting the free throw to complete the three-point play. Anthony Davis added to the highlight reel with an alley-oop finish and a put back dunk in the second half.

Flagg had totaled 28 points and 15 rebounds through his first two career games, while Davis entered averaging 24.5 points. Both players set season highs in the win.

Davis scored six straight points early in the fourth quarter to push Dallas’ lead to 109-93. He finished with 10 rebounds and five STOCKS (Steals+blocks) and looked noticeably more fluid on both ends.

Flagg turned in the best performance of his young career. The rookie looked comfortable cutting and attacking off the dribble in the half court, benefitting from D’Angelo Russell’s season-high in minutes, which allowed him to play more off the ball.

The Mavericks will host the Oklahoma City Thunder at the American Airlines Center on Monday, marking the team’s first back-to-back of the season.