New Orleans Pelicans @ LA Clippers
Wednesday, February 7, 2024 at 10:00 PM ET
Crypto.com Arena, Los Angeles, CA | Game ID: 22300731
Q1 Q2 Q3 Q4 Final
LAC 19 28 22 37 106NOP 36 19 24 38 117
ESPN UpdateESPN Update
Zion, McCollum lead big 4th quarter in the Pelicans' 117-106 win, slowing the Clippers' recent surge
LOS ANGELES -- — CJ McCollum scored 13 of his 25 points in the fourth quarter, Zion Williamson added 21 points and 10 assists, and the New Orleans Pelicans slowed the Los Angeles Clippers' recent roll with a 117-106 victory Wednesday night.
Brandon Ingram had 15 points and eight rebounds for the Pelicans, who opened a four-game road trip with their fourth consecutive victory to match their longest winning streak of the season. Herb Jones and Trey Murphy III added 13 points apiece in a wire-to-wire win over a weary opponent.
“It’s exhilarating to see our team lock in like we did,” Pelicans coach Willie Green said. “Watching the Clippers over the last couple of months, they’ve been one of the best teams in the league, so it was great to see all of our guys lock in from the start. Just a wire-to-wire, high-discipline game.”
James Harden scored 19 points and Norman Powell had 18 for the Clippers, whose four-game winning streak ended in their first game back from an impressive 6-1 road trip during which they moved to the top of the Western Conference standings. Los Angeles was playing its eighth game in 13 days, and New Orleans capitalized.
Kawhi Leonard scored 15 points and Paul George finished with seven after missing his first nine shots as Los Angeles lost for only the sixth time in 32 games since the start of December.
“It’s always difficult coming from a long road trip, but no excuses,” Harden said. “We had plenty of opportunities to win the game. Fatigue a little bit played a part in it. Three games in four nights, coming from Miami, Atlanta, so it is what it is. Now we get some rest and can finish the next few games strong.”
Playing through a bone bruise in his left foot, Williamson scored 13 points in the fourth quarter and finished one shy of his career high in assists, taking over down the stretch with a series of unstoppable drives to the hoop. McCollum’s fifth 3-pointer with 5:15 to play stretched the Pels’ lead to 105-89.
“We had great game plan and discipline tonight,” McCollum said. “When everybody gets touches, especially when the big fella gets touches and is able to figure out when to pass and when to score, it makes the game easier for everybody else. I just did my job.”
Jonas Valanciunas scored eight points for New Orleans before leaving in the second quarter with a bruised right calf.
A brutal schedule forced the Clippers to play at home one day after they returned from the franchise's final Grammys trip. The Clippers will move out of the downtown arena that hosts the music awards next season and into their new Intuit Dome in Inglewood.
The Clippers' weariness was obvious in the first quarter while New Orleans rolled to a 17-point lead. George went 0 for 9 in the first half, but hit his first jump shot after halftime.
“Their adjustments were pretty good,” Clippers coach Tyronn Lue said. “Willie did a good job putting Herb on James and putting Zion on Kawhi, and it worked tonight, and they played well, so give them credit.”
Harden passed Maurice Cheeks (7,392) for 15th place on the NBA’s career assists list during the second quarter.
Jones went to the locker room midway through the first quarter after he ran face-first into Leonard's shoulder while chasing a pass. Jones returned in the second quarter, but Valanciunas went to the locker room a few minutes later after colliding with Ingram.
Naji Marshall sat out with a back injury for New Orleans.
Clippers center Ivica Zubac returned from a one-game absence with a calf strain.
Who is who
the initials in the Players column
NOPBI B. Ingram
CM C. McCollum
CZ C. Zeller
DD D. Daniels
HJ H. Jones
JA J. Alvarado
JH J. Hawkins
JR J. Robinson-Earl
JV J. Valančiūnas
LN L. Nance Jr.
TM T. Murphy III
VA Valanciunas
ZW Z. Williamson
LACAC A. Coffey
BB B. Boston
DT D. Theis
IZ I. Zubac
JH J. Harden
KB K. Brown
KL K. Leonard
MP M. Plumlee
NP N. Powell
PG P. George
RW R. Westbrook
TM T. Mann
NOP/LAC the team itself, not a player
-- the feed named nobody
What
What happened
the codes in the Events column
M2 / M3 made 2 / made 3
X2 / X3 missed 2 / missed 3
FT / X1 free throw made / missed
AST assist
OR / DR offensive / defensive rebound
STL steal
BLK block
TO turnover
FL foul
OF offensive foul — ends the possession
VIOL violation
JUMP jump ball
TM timeout
IR instant replay
HE heave at the buzzer, filed to the team
Where
Where a shot came from
the middle field of M3.LW.25
RM at the rim inside 4 ft
RC right corner
RW right wing
SO straight on
LW left wing
LC left corner
M3.LW.25 made 3, left wing, 25 ft
X2.RM.01 missed 2, at the rim, 1 ft
When
When it happened
the Offset column
one number per event, in the Events order:
whole seconds from the start of the
possession to that event
Events FL X3.RC.23 OR M2.RM.01
Offset 0 18 22 24
the foul opens the possession at 0s;
the putback ends it at 24s, which is
the possession's own Dur