By Antonis Stroggylakis/ info@eurohoops.net
Every Euroleague Round means more career milestones, record-breaking extravaganzas, some ridiculous highlights, and all sorts of mind-blowing spectacles by Luka Doncic.
What was on the menu tonight?
Well, by registering a career-high 41 in PIR (Performance Index Rating) in Real Madrid’s victory over Olimpia Milano, the 18-year-old point forward became the youngest player to notch 40 or more evaluation points in a single game during the modern (post-2000) EuroLeague era.
Before this humongous performance by the Slovenian wunderkind, the youngest hooper in the “40+ list” was former EuroLeague champion and NBA-er Nikola Pekovic. At 21 years of age, the Montenegrin center had posted a PIR of 40 in the premiere of his 2007-2008 breakthrough season, with 29 points (13/14 from the field) and eight rebounds, leading Partizan Belgrade to an 81 – 78 win over Barcelona.
In order to reach 41, Doncic scored 27 points (tying his personal record), shooting with 5/9 two-pointers, 2/5 from beyond the arc and 11/12 from the line, grabbed eight rebounds, dished out five assists, stole the ball thrice, won 10 fouls and had just one turnover during less than 29 minutes he spent on the floor.