Ingram's 40 Surges Pelicans to Victory
Chrissy Smith • March 2, 2023
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We needed that one.
And by “we,” I mean the Pelicans players, coaches, fans, mascot, newborn baby fans, the NBA, pets, JJ Reddick, the Pels 12, and more.
The New Orleans Pelicans fought hard the entire game and ended up with the 121-110 win against the Portland Trailblazers on the road on Wednesday.
After having lost four straight games, Brandon Ingram was the hero we needed him to be and scored 40 points in the Pels victory. He also played 38 minutes and was a dangerous offensive weapon all night.
While the storyline focused around C.J. McCollum and Damian Lillard facing off for the first time since McCollum was traded to New Orleans, it was Ingram who was the star of the show. With that being said, McCollum played solid, scoring 24 points, and have seven board and seven assists.
Willie Green’s coaching was diverse with Jaxson Hayes coming off the bench to score 15 points in just under 16 minutes, his first double-digit scoring performance since Jan. 20. Hayes was solid defensively as well, collecting two blocks and two steals.
Dame scored a game-high 41 points, but he did not have even one assist, a credit to the strong defensive performance by the Pelicans team.
Next up for New Orleans is Friday, March 3 at the Golden State Warriors. Local fans here in the Central Time Zone can pre-game until 9 pm when tipoff happens.
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Well what a wild game. The game was certainly there for the taking and I’m sure the team will look back and see all the missed opportunities they failed to capitalize on. The first half was, how would I put it, leaving a lot to be desired on offense. However the defense on the other hand did their job to keep the game close as long as they did. The missed fumble call could have been the difference in this one but that’s easy to say with hindsight. I’ll be curious if the league reviews and comments on that specific call this week. The slow start on offense though looked like the culmination of starters not playing at all during the preseason and still being rusty. Kellen Moore had an even slower start to the season last year with much more sloppy play but this felt very avoidable had the strategy been different in the preseason. Even so the Saints were only down seven at the half which felt like a miracle given the circumstance. The second half was where it all changed for the Saints. But not until the slow start on offense continued into the start of the third quarter where the Lions were finally able to capitalize on the Saints mistakes to take a twenty one point lead. You couldn’t fault the defense at that point because of the spot they were repeatedly put in because of the offense. But with their backs against the wall the offense finally shook off the rust and got to work. Shough and company stormed back to tie the game in the fourth quarter as the offense quickly down the field multiple times finishing drives in the end zone. The defense was the unsung hero in the comeback attempt as they kept the Lions offense off the field and only allowing one field goal in the fourth quarter. The Saints had a chance to win the game at the end of regulation but the 62 yard field goal attempt was missed by Carlson. Onto overtime. In overtime the Lions answered first with a touchdown to St Brown which would force the Saints to respond in turn. The Saints answered with a touchdown of their own before deciding to play for the win instead of a potential tie situation. They failed on the two point conversion to fall to the Lions 31-30 in overtime. The two point conversion was right call by Kellen Moore and company in my eyes. The Saints had the momentum almost the whole second half, were playing on the road in a game where they were down multiple scores while also knowing the rest of the division had already lost. So no harm done if they didn’t convert, they’d have the same record as everyone else if it didn’t work. It was the right type of aggression you like to see as a fan even if the end result wasn’t what you wanted. Overall I thought this game was going to be a good litmus test for the Saints and after the first half I would have said they failed the test. But the second half showed me what the team is capable of moving forward. They hung tough and made plays when they needed to and almost came back against a really good Lions team who have been playoff contenders the past few years. So although they didn’t get the win the Saints passed the litmus test in my eyes. If the Saints can consistently play like they did in the second half moving forward there’s no telling what their ceiling could be this year.
The Louisiana Ragin’ Cajuns are now 1-1 after falling to the 14th-ranked USC Trojans 49-30 in Los Angeles. USC quarterback Jayden Maiava continued his impressive start to the season, throwing for 261 yards and five touchdowns against UL. Running back King Miller also had a big night for the Trojans, carrying the ball 18 times for 128 yards and a touchdown. That offensive production helped USC create separation from the Cajuns throughout the game. For Louisiana, the strong ground attack and short passing game that worked against Lamar carried over into Saturday’s matchup. Quarterback Lunch Winfield was a name many people across the country heard plenty of on the Big Ten Network, running the ball 14 times for 91 yards and a pair of touchdowns. He also went 16-of-22 for 212 yards through the air and threw UL’s first passing touchdown of the season. Redshirt freshman slot receiver Russell Babineaux quickly became Winfield’s go-to target, catching passes on a variety of short routes and using his speed to create yards after the catch. It paid off, as Babineaux finished with 91 receiving yards and the Cajuns’ lone touchdown reception. What Went Right It might not necessarily be what the Cajuns coaching staff wanted out of him this season, but Lunch Winfield being his true self with his running capabilities was a big reason why Louisiana was able to put up 30 points against USC. He accounted for 85% of UL’s total offensive yards. Winfield had 91 yards and two touchdowns on the ground through 14 carries, one of them including a 32 yard run score. He also went an impressive 16/22 through the air and threw for 212 yards. On top of that, he threw the Cajuns’ first and only touchdown pass of the season, connecting with Russell Babineaux on a corner route toward the sideline in the end zone that couldn’t have been placed any better. Speaking of Babineaux, he led all receivers Saturday with 91 yards on six receptions. The slot receiver made his presence felt throughout the game as Winfield’s most reliable target. No other wide receiver finished with more than 11 receiving yards. Tight end Brock Chappell, who stepped in for the injured Caden Jensen after Jensen did not play Saturday, also had a productive game with three receptions for 47 yards. It’s also worth mentioning the interception by redshirt sophomore cornerback Avery Demery in plus territory on the opening drive of the game. Maiava threw a questionable and inaccurate pass that went directly to Demery, giving Louisiana possession at the USC 39-yard line. UL capitalized by putting the first points of the game on the board with a 47-yard field goal from Tony Sterner. That sequence gave the team an early wake-up call and helped the Cajuns keep things close for most of the first half. And finally, I would be remiss not to mention that UL came out of this game relatively healthy with very few injuries, at least as far as we know right now. That was probably one of the most important things everyone wanted to see coming out of this game. What Went Wrong Outside of Lunch Winfield’s scrambles, Louisiana’s running game was basically nonexistent. JJ Garner, Anthony Reagan Jr. and Steven Blanco combined for only 55 yards on the ground. We knew UL had a tall task going up against this USC defensive front, so that wasn’t necessarily unexpected. After last week’s win over Lamar, one of the biggest takeaways from the offense was that Louisiana would rely heavily on its running game and short screen-passing attack. With top receivers like Shelton Sampson Jr. and Trenton Chaney being out on Saturday for injury, that once again appeared to be the case. Lunch had to either rely on Babineaux, tight end Brock Chappell, or himself to gain significant yards. Then there were the quite a few opportunities that the Cajuns simply missed out on. The most notable came when Maiava threw a pass to Kayden Dixon-Wyatt in the end zone that went right through the hands of senior cornerback Maurion Eleam. Instead of an interception, USC came away with a touchdown and a 21-10 lead late in the second quarter. That was around the point when the Trojans began to really separate themselves. Not long after, Louisiana punted on its next possession, and multiple missed tackle opportunities allowed USC to take the return 86 yards for a touchdown that gave them a 28-10 lead going into halftime. Missed tackles became a big issue for a big part of the game for the Cajuns. Then there were the plays where Maiava threw absolute dots to his receivers in the end zone in very tight spaces, and I mean very tight that they could’ve easily been picked off. It was little mistakes and missed opportunities like those all throughout the game that made the final score look a little wider than it probably needed to be. Final Takeaways Louisiana played hard all game and, honestly, did better than most people, including myself, expected against such a high-powered USC team. Lunch Winfield played his heart out, and as he said after the game, he was willing to “lay it all on the line” for his team. Russell Babineaux also proved that he can be a big part of this offense moving forward. At 5’9” and 178 pounds, he isn’t a big receiver by any means, but he is shifty, quick and knows how to use his speed to pick up yards. Now, it becomes a matter of getting Shelton Sampson Jr. and Trenton Chaney healthy so Louisiana can have a deeper wide receiver room and start to develop more of a vertical threat in the passing game. Brock Chappell also showed that being down one tight end isn’t going to be the end of the world for this offense. The Cajuns through two games have showed that they have a deep tight end group who have proven to be one of Winfield’s most reliable options when Louisiana needs to move the ball vertically downfield. Louisiana didn’t leave Los Angeles with a win, but the Cajuns should have plenty of confidence moving forward after a hard-fought performance against one of the best teams in the country. They also went home $1.3 million richer as part of the contract between UL and USC for playing the game. The Cajuns will now turn their attention to the UAB Blazers, who come to Lafayette for a 7 p.m. kickoff Saturday. UAB enters the matchup with a win over ULM and a loss to Illinois. Louisiana is currently a 9.5-point favorite in the matchup.