By Will Guillory, Anthony Slater and Alex Andrejev
Even without star Zion Williamson, the New Orleans Pelicans earned a 105-98 victory over the Sacramento Kings on Friday in the NBA 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 the playoffs.
With Williamson out due to a left hamstring strain suffered in Tuesday’s loss to the Los Angeles Lakers, the Pelicans have leaned on their depth. Six New Orleans players – Brandon Ingram, Jonas Valančiūnas, Trey Murphy III, Larry Nance Jr., Naji Marshall and Jose Alvarado – scored in double figures. Ingram led the Pelicans with 24 points, while Valančiūnas (19 points) added a team-high 12 rebounds.
The Pelicans found their momentum in the second quarter and led 54-45 at halftime after committing six turnovers in the first quarter. Sacramento pulled within seven points late in the third, but New Orleans continued to limit the Kings’ offense led by De’Aaron Fox, who scored a game-high 35 points. Domantas Sabonis added 23 points and 14 rebounds for Sacramento, but the team lacked New Orleans’ overall chemistry on Friday, with the lead blowing to 20 points with less than seven minutes to play.
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 had 26.8 percent from behind the arc.
New Orleans, which earned the eighth seed with the win, will face Oklahoma City in the opener on Sunday.
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What worked for New Orleans?
Despite Williamson’s absence, the Pelicans managed to pick up their sixth win over the Kings this year and qualify for the playoffs. Ingram had a good night — with 24 points, six rebounds and six assists — after being benched in the fourth quarter of Tuesday’s loss to the Lakers. His decision-making on the offensive end was exquisite for most of the evening.
He also received a lot of help from his teammates. Marshall, Alvarado, Nance and Murphy all provided quality minutes. Valančiūnas also held his own in his battle against Sabonis. With Williamson expected to miss at least the first few games of the series against OKC, New Orleans will need the others to continue to lift BI and CJ McCollum if this team has any chance of putting a scare into the No. 1 seed. — Will Guillory, Pelicans editor-in-chief
What went wrong for Sacramento?
A lot. Three nights after burning the Golden State Warriors deep, the Kings went 11 of 39 from 3 as a team. Keegan Murray, who scored eight against the Warriors, made just two of seven and left briefly with a hip problem after a nasty slide and turnover. They were outscored in the paint 56-42, giving up several wide-open dunks in the half-court. They turned it over 15 times. They missed seven free throws. Keon Ellis, Tuesday’s hero, went scoreless in 27 minutes and was minus-20. — Anthony Slater, Warriors senior writer
What does this mean for the Kings?
A 46-win season won’t end with a playoff appearance. It was still the second most successful year for the Kings in the last 18 years. Fox and Sabonis were fringe candidates for All-NBA. Murray has taken a big step forward defensively and has a bright future as a two-way winger. Ellis is a bargain. Coach Mike Brown has built a respected culture. But legitimate questions arise about this core’s ultimate ceiling in a tough conference. Can they re-sign Malik Monk this summer? Can they use their draft picks to land a bigger piece via trade? Can they revive the offense at a more potent level while maintaining their defensive improvement? These are off-season questions. The offseason is here. — Roofer
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(Photo: Stephen Lew / USA Today)