The Los Angeles Lakers finished the regular season on a positive note, defeating the New Orleans Pelicans, 110-98, simultaneously capping off a five-game winning streak.
The Pelicans entered the contest extremely short-handed but stayed in the game early on off the hands of Eric Bledsoe and Naji Marshall.
The Lakers received a strong first-quarter outing from Dennis Schroder, who scored 10 points on 4-of-4 shooting, a stark contrast to his last performance.
Though Los Angeles maintained a healthy lead towards the latter part of the second quarter, the Pelicans made a late run to close the gap at halftime. A Marshall buzzer-beater from near the logo made it 63-59, Lakers.
The third quarter saw the Lakers find their groove, mostly towards the ending minutes. Los Angeles’ reserves, primarily Alex Caruso, began converting tough shots while generating turnovers on defense to increase the gap.
New Orleans didn’t have enough juice in the fourth to make a comeback, leading to a Los Angeles win.
Here are three observations from the Lakers’ win: