SACRAMENTO – The New Orleans Pelicans threw early “punches” on April 11 to boost their hopes of securing an automatic play-off berth with a 135-123 National Basketball Association (NBA) road victory over the Sacramento Kings.
In a crucial Western Conference battle, Zion Williamson and C.J. McCollum both finished with 31 points, as the Pelicans completed an impressive wire-to-wire win.
The result means New Orleans (48-32) will clinch sixth place in the West – and avoid the play-in tournament – if they win their final two games, at Golden State on April 12 and against the Los Angeles Lakers at home on April 14.
The Pelicans were always in control after a devastating first-quarter performance in which they raced into a 34-11 lead at one stage after an 18-0 run.
“Throw the first punch to the last punch, and go out on our shield,” McCollum said of his team’s aggressive first-quarter approach. “Understand the work, understand the preparation, have fun with it and just enjoy the blessing of being able to play this game at a high level.”
Sacramento’s defeat left them in eighth place in the West on 45-35 – an identical record with ninth-placed Golden State and the 10th-placed Lakers, meaning the final standings are likely to go down to the wire.
Golden State battled past the eliminated Portland Trail Blazers 100-92 in Oregon. Stephen Curry led the Warriors scoring with 22 points, with Jonathan Kuminga adding 19.
Eastern Conference top seeds Boston slumped to their second straight defeat, losing 118-109 at home to the New York Knicks at the TD Garden.
Knicks star Jalen Brunson finished with 39 points to continue his dazzling run of recent form. The guard has now scored 35 points or more in his last five outings.
Brunson’s latest virtuoso effort included six three-pointers in a 15-of-23 shooting performance from the field.
The Knicks are third in the Eastern Conference with a 48-32 record, one game behind second-placed Milwaukee (49-31) with two games of the regular season remaining.
Boston (62-18) were subjected to a smattering of boos from their home fans at the final buzzer, and Celtics centre Kristaps Porzingis had no complaints with the crowd’s response.
“We got booed at the end for a reason,” he said. “This was not the team that our fans love. But best believe we’re going to show up when we need to.
“We’ve got a week of work now ahead of us, a couple of games to bounce back and time to get going on all cylinders.”
Celtics coach Joe Mazzulla shrugged off his team’s second successive loss following a 104-91 defeat by the Bucks, saying that a drop-off in intensity was inevitable once Boston had secured the top seeding in the post-season.
“I actually don’t mind the result of the last two games,” he said.
“Going into the post-season with a bunch of wins and feeling good about yourself isn’t necessarily any better than going in with a bloody lip.” AFP
