BY: ROBERT ANTHONY MORALES – Sports On Air USA Correspondent
LOS ANGELES – The New Orleans Pelicans pounced on a tired team playing their second straight game on the road, beating the Los Angeles Lakers, 129-109, on Sunday at the Smoothie King Center.
Zion Williamson and former Laker Brandon Ingram led New Orleans’ 1-2 punch with a healthy serving of 52 points, 9 rebounds and 14 assists. C.J. McCollum added 22 points for good measure.
Barely 24 hours after losing a close 108-106 thriller against the Timberwolves at the Target Center in Minnesota, the Lakers got behind early in the first quarter when the Pelicans stormed to a 42-33 lead.
It was sweet revenge for the Pelicans, whom the Lakers routed for 44 points during the NBA’s In-Season Tournament semifinals last month in Las Vegas.
“It definitely brought us together more as a team. I feel like we’ve been playing great since then,” Williamson said of the 133-89 mauling New Orleans suffered at the hands of the purple-and-gold.
Buoyed by a capacity crowd of 18,867 at the Smoothie King Center, the Pelicans shot 51.7 percent from the field (45 of 87) and 50 percent from long distance (17 of 34). They also outwored the Lakers on the boards, 47-35 and won the assists battle, 33-27.
LeBron James, who figured in the controversial ending to the Lakers-Wolves game the night before when his 3 was ruled by the refs as a 2, led the Lakers with 34 points. 5 rebounds and 8 assists.
Anthony Davis added 20 points and 10 rebounds while Austin Reaves accounted for 20 off the bench.
“We have to figure it out and get better, for sure. We’re not one team that likes to play from behind. We’ve been in that position a lot this year,” James told The Associated Press.
