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Pelicans Drop In The West At The Hands Of The Warriors

The New Orleans Pelicans' road woes continue by losing to Golden State Warriors.

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New Orleans Pelicans
New Orleans Pelicans

NEW ORLEANS - Klay Thompson led the Golden State Warriors to a 108-99 victory over the New Orleans Pelicans on Friday. The sharpshooting guard finished with a game-high 27 points and handed Golden State its fifth-straight win. The setback for the Pelicans has them losers of five of their last six games, placing them 10th in the conference.

Klay Thompson

New Orleans started the game strong as they looked to build momentum from Wednesday night's victory against the Portland Trail Blazers. The Pelicans, at one point, grabbed a 17-point lead before finishing the quarter up 35-21. Brandon Ingram led all scorers with 8 points in the first, and New Orleans dished out ten assists on 66% shooting.

Golden State would use a second-quarter run to chip away at the Pels lead before halftime. The Warriors would take a one-point lead before New Orleans went on an 8-4 run to close the half and lead 57-54 at halftime. The Pelicans lineup featured balanced scoring with four players with ten or more points in the half.

Steve Kerr's group turned up the intensity on defense in the second half, holding New Orleans to just 42 second-half points. The win happened despite Golden State's second night of back-to-back games without their best player, Steph Curry. Their defense stabilized their offense which sputtered at times with 18 turnovers. The Pelicans couldn't capitalize consistently on the Warriors' mistakes. 

Brandon Ingram

New Orleans was shorthanded again, with Zion Williamson rehabbing his hamstring, Larry Nance Jr (ankle), and Jose Alvarado (tibia) out for multiple weeks. Pelicans Jonas Valanciunas (calf) and Josh Richardson (personal reasons) did not suit up for this game. 

Without them, there was a heavy load offensively for Brandon Ingram and CJ McCollum to carry. Ingram finished the night with 17 points on 6/16 shooting. McCollum led New Orleans in scoring with 25 points, but the team's offense floundered in the second half. After starting the game 5/8 from the three-point line, the Pelicans finished just 5/21.

New Orleans got dominated in the paint, 52-36 Warriors, and Golden State had a 43-29 advantage on the glass. After dishing out 15 assists in the first half, the Pelicans had 5 in the remainder of the game. 

The Pelicans must regroup on their road trip to face Sacramento on Monday. The Kings are playing surprisingly well this season as the 3rd seed in the cramped Western Conference. 

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