Even without star Zion Williamson, the New Orleans Pelicans completed a 105-98 win over the Sacramento Kings on Friday in the NBA’s Play-In Tournament, setting up a series against the Oklahoma City Thunder in the first round of the Western Conference playoffs. The Kings, meanwhile, are eliminated from postseason contention.
With Williamson out due to a left hamstring strain suffered in Tuesday’s loss to the Los Angeles Lakers, the Pelicans relied on their depth. Six New Orleans players — Brandon Ingram, Jonas Valančiūnas, Trey Murphy, Larry Nance Jr., Naji Marshall and Jose Alvarado — scored double-digit figures. Ingram led the Pelicans with 24 points, while Valančiūnas added a team-high 12 rebounds.
The Pelicans found their momentum in the second quarter and carried a 54-45 lead into halftime after committing six turnovers in the first quarter. Sacramento pushed to within seven points late in the third, but New Orleans continued limiting a Kings offense led by De’Aaron Fox, who had a game-high 35 points. Domantas Sabonis added 23 points and a 14 rebounds for Sacramento, but the squad lacked New Orleans’ all-around chemistry on Friday, with the lead ballooning to 20 points with less than seven minutes left.
New Orleans shot 51.8 percent from the field compared to Sacramento’s 40.9 percent. The Pels also shot 36.8 percent from 3, while the Kings were 26.8 from behind the arc.
New Orleans, which secured the eighth seed with the win, will play Oklahoma City in Game 1 on Sunday.
This will be updated.
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(Photo: Stephen Lew / USA Today)
