The Pelicans outlasted the Utah Jazz and the referees again on Thursday, earning a 138-132 win with Brandon Ingram scoring a career-high 49 points.
The Good: Brandon Ingram vs. Donovan Mitchell
Fans were treated to one heck of a duel between two young stars on Thursday. Brandon Ingram set a career-high, the second time he’s done so this season, with 49 points. Donovan Mitchell matched him shot for shot the entire night, also finishing with 46.
The two traded baskets for much of the fourth quarter and overtime. After Mitchell hit seemingly every shot in the middle stages of the fourth quarter, Ingram took over down the stretch. His pull-up jumper with two-tenths of a second looked to be the game-winner. Instead, the game went to overtime (more on that later) and it just allowed Ingram to keep cooking. It was the finest performance yet in his breakout season.
It was one of the best Pelican games of the season. It was one of the best Pelican games in years.
Honorable mentions: Derrick Favors-Ingram two-man game, E’Twaun Moore’s clutch steal and score, Nickeil Walker-Alexander
The Bad: The referees
Another game against the Jazz, another terrible referee decision that decides the outcome of the game. After Ingram appeared to hit the game-winner with two-tenths of a second left on the clock, the Jazz were gifted a soft foul call at best.
Instead of a huge win from the Pelicans, the game went to overtime. The Pelicans hung on for the win but it was yet another growing example of the league getting it wrong and the Pelicans being the victim as a result.
Honorable mentions: Defense on Donovan Mitchell
The Ball: Poor shooting but impactful
Lonzo Ball struggled again shooting the ball on Thursday, going 2-for-12 from the field and 1-for-5 from three-point territory. But his impact was felt in other ways on the night. He finished with 13 assists, seven of those coming in little more than a period to open the night.
Defensively, Ball made some big plays down the stretch of regulation. With Donovan Mitchell sizzling, Ball took the assignment of defending him down the stretch. In the two possessions prior to the terrible in-bound foul call, Ball forced contested misses to give the Pelicans a chance at cutting into the deficit and then to take the lead.