NBA: Pelicans breeze past Clippers for 4th straight win
FILE – Trey Murphy III #25 of the New Orleans Pelicans controls the ball against the Houston Rockets during the first half at Toyota Center on March 17, 2023 in Houston, Texas. Carmen Mandato/Getty Images/AFP
Brandon Ingram and Jonas Valanciunas had double-doubles and the visiting New Orleans Pelicans dominated the Los Angeles Clippers 131-110 on Saturday night.
Ingram, coming off his first career triple-double, had 32 points and a career-high 13 assists, and Valanciunas had 17 points as 13 rebounds as the Pelicans (37-37) won their fourth consecutive game to start a crucial four-game road trip.
Article continues after this advertisementNew Orleans made a season-high 21 3-pointers, led by Trey Murphy III’s career-high 10 on 12 attempts. CJ McCollum added 21 points and Josh Richardson scored 13 as New Orleans clinched the season series against L.A., improving to 2-0 with one game remaining April 1 in New Orleans.
new career high for Trey 🫡 pic.twitter.com/nCcdDl7Cpt
— New Orleans Pelicans (@PelicansNBA) March 26, 2023
Bones Hyland scored 18 points to lead the Clippers (39-36). Eric Gordon had 15, Russell Westbrook had 14, Ivica Zubac and Nicolas Batum had 13 each, Kawhi Leonard added 12 and Robert Covington 11.
Article continues after this advertisementIngram had four points and Murphy made a 3-pointer as New Orleans extended its 12-point halftime lead to 81-63 early in the third quarter.
The lead grew to 21 points four times before the Clippers trimmed it to 12, and the Pelicans held a 99-85 lead at the end of the third quarter.
Valanciunas scored New Orleans’ first seven points of the fourth quarter and Murphy added two 3-pointers as the lead swelled to 119-94.
The Pelicans scored the first eight points of the game and Ingram had eight points and two assists as they extended the lead to 16-7.
Murphy made all four of his 3-point attempts and New Orleans finished 9 of 11 from beyond the arc to take a 37-26 lead at the end of the first quarter.
The Pelicans started the second quarter with a 10-2 run, but the Clippers used an 11-0 run to get within 47-39.
L.A. got as close as seven points before Ingram and Murphy each made a 3-pointer to help New Orleans take a 68-56 halftime lead.
The Pelicans finished with 14 3-pointers in the half but did not attempt a free throw. They finished 8 of 9 on free throws.
