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Valančiūnas Leads Way in Pelicans Win

Chrissy Smith • Jan 14, 2023

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DETROIT – The game plan of running things through Jonas Valančiūnas eventually paid off as the New Orleans Pelicans beat the Detroit Pistons, 116-110.


The Pelicans played at Detroit on Friday, Jan. 13, but it was all good luck for the Pels as they were able to win another one without Brandon Ingram and Zion Williamson.


But it was Valančiūnas who was the leading scorer for New Orleans who finished the night with 33 points and 16 boards. CJ McCollum and Trey Murphy both finished with 19 points each, and Naji Marshall continues to impress with his game, scoring 17 points against Detroit.


The turning point in the game was in the second quarter when the Pelicans went on a 14-4 run to take a dominating lead. Although Detroit never quit, and even made it a close game in the fourth quarter, the Pelicans were able to pull it out being back in head coach Willie Green’s home town.


The Pelicans will play one more game in this stretch on the road and that will come on Monday, Jan. 16 at 2 pm against the Cleveland Cavaliers. Get your bets in early as this is a very early game for the Pels. The next home game for Nola will be on Wednesday at 7 pm against the Miami Heat.


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By Erik Trosclair 01 May, 2024
Lets get into it!
By Chrissy Smith 30 Apr, 2024
Team Stats (Thunder at Pelicans) Final Score: 97-89 Rebounds: 44-50 Assists: 17-22 Blocks: 7-8 Steals: 10-10 Turnovers: 14-19 Stat Leaders (Thunder @ Pelicans) Scoring Leaders: Shai Gilgeous-Alexander/Jalen Williams, 24; CJ McCollum, 20 Rebound Leaders: Shai Gilgeous-Alexander, 10; Jonas Valanciusas, 13 Assist Leaders: Chet Holmgren, 5; Brandon Ingram, 6 My Player of the Game: Jonas Valanciunas Takeaways Well, the Pelicans got swept in the first-round of the NBA playoffs. The Pelicans' offense struggled this whole series, and although it didn't seem like the OKC defense was anything special, they held the Pelicans to well under 100 points per game. Turnovers were a huge issue for the Pelicans this entire playoff series. OKC's Dort shut down Brandon Ingram every game -- and it was hurtful to the Pelicans that Ingram was never able to take over or hit some of his open shots. He went 2-of-14 from the field in tonight's game. When Jordan Hawkins was put in the game, the Pelicans went on a run in the first half but then he did not play in the second half. Not sure where Jonas ends up next year, but he had a good game for the Pelicans tonight. Many times the NBA championship teams come down to who can stay healthy, and unfortunately for the Pelicans, Zion and BI got hurt at the worst time of the season. Regardless, the Pelicans won 49 games this season, we got to witness a healthy Zion for the entire regular season, we saw Herb Jones improve tremendously, and we saw Dyson Daniels and Jordan Hawkins kick off their great, young careers. There will be moves in the offseason because the Pelicans have a generational talent in Zion. For now, I appreciate everyone who has gone along on the ride with me this season. I truly believe that next year we will be back better than ever. As always, Go Pelicans! Follow The Kneaux on X , and follow me there too @SportsChrissy.
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