Dallas Mavericks rookie Cooper Flagg isn’t ready to be ruled out of the Rookie of the Year race just yet.
The race between Flagg and his former Duke teammate, Kon Knueppel of the Charlotte Hornets, has been close.
But Flagg sent a message Friday night, becoming the first teenager to score at least 50 points in an NBA regular-season game.
Despite the strong individual performance, the Mavericks suffered a 138-127 loss to the Orlando Magic.
Flagg surpassed his career high of 49 points, which he set against the Hornets on Jan. 29.
He becomes just the 10th rookie in NBA history to score 50-plus points, and the third since the NBA/ABA merger (1976-77), according to the Mavericks.
Flagg’s performance followed up on what was a memorable night for Knueppel on Thursday.
Here’s how Flagg’s performance went on Friday night:
Cooper Flagg stats vs. Magic
Cooper Flagg highlights vs. Magic
This article originally appeared on USA TODAY: Cooper Flagg points tonight, Magic vs Mavericks stats
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