The New Orleans Pelicans, the Los Angeles Lakers’ opponent in Thursday’s semifinal round of the NBA in-season tournament, have been pegged as a team on the rise. Since early last season, some have even felt they’re a potential championship contender.
But on Thursday night in Las Vegas, the Lakers gave New Orleans a hard and painful lesson in what it takes to play winning basketball in big games.
They jumped to an early lead, but New Orleans fought back by continuously attacking the paint and pounding the offensive glass. However, the Lakers controlled the second quarter, scoring 38 points in that frame, to go up by 13 points at halftime.
From that point, it was a laugher. Los Angeles made a mockery of the young Pelicans. It outscored its opponents, 43-17, in the third quarter, resulting in plenty of garbage time down the stretch. The final score of 133-89 illustrated just how lopsided this contest was, and it was the first time in 13 seasons the Lakers had won a game by at least 40 points.
They won many of the effort categories in this contest. They outrebounded New Orleans, 59-42, had nine more free-throw attempts and outscored it 23-12 in fast-break points. Perhaps the most impressive aspect of this win was the Lakers’ 3-point shooting, an area they have struggled mightily in all season. They shot 48.6% from downtown, and at times, it almost seemed as if they couldn’t miss.
The Lakers move on to the championship to play the high-scoring Indiana Pacers for the first NBA Cup. They improved to a 14-9, which moves them into fourth place in the Western Conference. They have won 11 of their last 15 games.