Hustle plays and production from up and down the lineup on Friday helped the New Orleans Pelicans overcome the absence of leading-scorer Zion Williamson, keep their season alive and avoid a historically significant loss.
Brandon Ingram scored 24 points, while Jonas Valanciunas added 19 points and 12 rebounds as the Pelicans booked a spot in the NBA playoffs with a 105-98 victory over the Sacramento Kings in a play-in tournament elimination game.
“We stayed together. We supported each other. We played for each other,” Valanciunas said. “We all want to get to the playoffs. And we did it by playing good basketball, by supporting each other, helping each other on defense, on offense, sharing the ball, you know, making a right play. It’s fun basketball to play that way.”
Photo: AP
Williamson was sidelined by a left hamstring strain that occurred as he reached the 40-point mark in a play-in loss to the Los Angeles Lakers on Tuesday.
Undaunted, New Orleans used a balanced approach to improve to 8-5 this season without Williamson.
Six players scored 10 or more points, including reserves Larry Nance Jr (13), Naji Marshall (11) and Jose Alvarado (10).
Photo: Stephen Lew-USA Today
“You get 34 points from your bench, it’s a great night for them, a tough night for us,” Kings coach Mike Brown said.
Trey Murphy III, starting because of Williamson’s absence, added 16 points for New Orleans, who are to begin a first-round playoff series today against top seeds the Oklahoma City Thunder.
“It feels good. This was a goal at the beginning of the year,” Ingram said of clinching a playoff berth. “We had another opportunity today and we came in and everybody contributed.”
De’Aaron Fox scored 35 points, and Domantas Sabonis had 23 points and 14 rebounds for the ninth-seeded Kings, who set up their matchup with New Orleans by defeating No. 10 seed the Golden State Warriors in their play-in opener.
“We were a little passive offensively and not all of us were aggressive with our play tonight,” Brown said, alluding to a combined four-for-17 shooting from young starters Keegan Murray (four for 12) and Keon Ellis (zero for five).
“We have to be able to get the ball in the paint,” said Brown, whose team were outscored 58-44 inside and missed seven of 22 free throws. “You’ve got to be able to finish and you’ve got to get to the free throw line and convert.”
The game was a test of the Pelicans’ ability to handle the pressure of a do-or-die game after squandering two previous chances to lock up a playoff berth at home.
New Orleans lost to the Lakers in their regular-season finale on Sunday last week, missing a chance to clinch the sixth seed, before losing again to the Lakers on Tuesday. They entered their matchup with the Kings facing the possibility of becoming the first 49-win team in more than 50 years (the Phoenix Suns in 1972) to miss the NBA playoffs.
Instead, New Orleans improved to 6-0 against Sacramento this season, becoming the first team to go 6-0 in a season (without a playoff series) against an opponent since Denver against the Minnesota Timberwolves in the 1994-1995 season.
“We deserved it. That’s how we felt coming into this game,” Nance said. “We deserve to be in the playoffs. You don’t win 49 games by accident.”
In Miami, the Heat shrugged off the absence of star forward Jimmy Butler to crush the Chicago Bulls 112-91 in their play-in eliminator and earn a clash with the top-seeded Boston Celtics in the first round.
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