HOUSTON -- Fresh off setting a franchise rookie scoring record, Cooper Flagg poured in 34 more points Saturday night. But his coach left the game incensed Flagg didn't get the opportunity to score a couple more at the free throw line with the game in the balance.
After the Mavs' 111-107 road loss to the Houston Rockets, Dallas coach Jason Kidd ripped the referees for not calling a foul on Flagg's drive to the basket late in the game. The rookie missed a layup on that possession that would have tied the score with 25 seconds remaining.
"I saw a foul," Kidd said. "[Officials] Sean [Wright], Simone [Jelks] and Jason [Goldenberg] were awful tonight. The referees were unacceptable. It's a foul, and he needs to be at the free throw line. Now, does he make both? That's up to the player, but the referees did not do their job. They were terrible."
Flagg followed up his 49-point performance in Thursday's home loss to the Charlotte Hornets -- the highest-scoring outing ever by an NBA teenager -- by dominating off the dribble again. He was 13-of-25 from the floor against the Rockets, including 11-of-17 in the paint.
According to ESPN Research, Flagg's 50 paint points against the Hornets and Rockets are the most by a rookie in a two-game span during the play-by-play era, which started in 1997-98.
"He's figured it out," Rockets star Kevin Durant said. "He understands that he's tough to stop."
On the possession that perturbed Kidd, Flagg drove with a left-hand dribble down the middle of the floor against Rockets defensive stopper Amen Thompson. Flagg attempted a left-handed layup in traffic, falling to the floor as it missed.
"I definitely felt some contact, but at the end of the day, the refs are the ones making the call, so it is what it is," said Flagg, who finished with 12 rebounds and five assists in addition to his 34 points, becoming the only teenager ever to record consecutive 30-point double-doubles. "I mean, it's tough. You just got to play through it. It's part of the game. It's not the first time in my life that I haven't got calls, and it's probably not going to be the last. So whatever it is, just got to keep playing through it."
Flagg was 7-of-10 from the line against the Rockets, a team known for physical defense. That is only the fifth time this season that Flagg, who averages 4.5 free throws per game, has attempted double-digit free throws in a game.
"He's going to continue to keep going until they blow the whistle," Kidd said. "There's a lot of fouls missed with this young man. Maybe they just don't know his game yet, but that's who he is. He's going to continue to keep driving. He's not going to get discouraged. Tonight he backed up what he did the other night -- put his team in a position to win the game or to tie the game."
Flagg has not publicly complained about officiating all season -- and has yet to be called for a technical foul in the NBA -- but he appreciated his coach's willingness to speak up on his behalf.
"I feel like JK has a lot of trust in me, and I have a lot of trust in him," Flagg said. "And so just building that relationship, I feel that we're continue to grow our bond. That's just having my back."
