PELICANS HOLD OFF JAZZ
Zion Williamson showed no fear of renowned Jazz rim protector Rudy Gobert and spearheaded a relentless — and effective — assault on the Utah basket.
Pelicans 129, Jazz 124
Williamson had 26 points, 10 rebounds and five assists, and the New Orleans Pelicans held off a late Utah comeback bid to beat the NBA-leading Jazz 129-124 on Monday night in New Orleans.
“My mindset was, whatever I can do to give my teammates energy, I’m going to do it,” said Williamson, whose dominant third quarter gave New Orleans a double-digit lead heading into the fourth. “After the first two quarters of me kind of reading their defense, I really got a feel for it and I just was on the attack.”
And the defenders he attacked included the 7-foot-1 Gobert, a two-time NBA defensive player of the year.
“Rudy Gobert is a phenomenal defender and phenomenal shot-blocker. So, it’s not easy making shots over him,” Williamson said. “Honestly, I looked to draw the foul initially, but somehow I finished those shots.”
Brandon Ingram scored 26 points and Lonzo Ball added 23 points to go with eight assists, seven rebounds and two blocks, giving New Orleans three starters with 20-plus points.
“Any time we all play like this, I definitely like our chances,” Ball said.
Pelicans reserve JJ Redick scored 17 points, highlighted by a pair of fourpoint plays on 3-pointers as he was fouled.
Bojan Bogdanovic hit seven 3s and finished with a game-high 31 points for Utah (27-8), which was outscored 74-56 in the paint in losing for just the eighth time this season, but also the second time in three games.
“We’ve got to own the paint and we didn’t do that in any way shape or form,” said Utah guard Donovan Mitchell, who scored 21 points. “This is a tough loss. I think we’re all pretty upset about this because it’s stuff that we knew.”
Ball, however, said the Pelicans “knew we can get to the rim against pretty much anybody. It’s one of our strengths.”
New Orleans led by as many as 17 in the second half and was still up 14 when Ball’s 3 made it 122-108 with 3:54 left.
But Utah steadily chipped away during the next three minutes, pulling to 125-124 on Royce O’Neale’s 3 with 46.7 seconds left. Mitchell, who scored eight of his points in the final minutes to help give the Jazz a chance, missed a driving floater with a chance to put Utah back in the lead.
Gobert, who had 22 points, nine rebounds and five blocks, was called for a loose-ball foul trying to get the rebound and Williamson hit two free throws to put New Orleans up three.
Utah’s last chance to tie went awry when New Orleans swarmed perimeter shooters and Mike Conley was forced to attempt a leaning, double-clutch 3 from the corner that missed the rim.
Nets 124, Spurs 113 (OT): James Harden had 30 points, 15 assists and 14 rebounds and visiting Brooklyn overcame a collapse in the final seconds of regulation to beat the Spurs, snapping a 17-game losing streak in San Antonio. The Spurs closed the fourth quarter on a 10-0 run to force overtime.
Nuggets 118, Bulls 112: Nikola Jokic dominated with 39 points and 14 rebounds, and visiting Denver beat Chicago. Jokic scored 17 in the fourth quarter to help the Nuggets come away with the win after blowing a 15point lead. He finished with nine assists, just missing his 50th career triple-double.
Mavericks 130, Magic 124: Luka Doncic had 33 points, 10 rebounds and nine assists, Kristaps Porzingis played a nearly flawless second half and Dallas defeated host Orlando. Nikola Vucevic had 29 points, 15 rebounds and eight assists for the Magic, who dropped their fourth straight.
76ers 130, Pacers 114: Shake Milton scored 26 points, Furkan Korkmaz had 19 and the reserves sparked host Philadelphia to a win over Indiana. Joel Embiid had 24 points and 13 rebounds, and Ben Simmons had 18 points and six rebounds.
Trail Blazers 123, Hornets 111: Carmelo Anthony had 29 points and five steals off the bench for host Portland. LaMelo Ball scored 30 points to lead Charlotte.
Cavaliers 101, Rockets 90: Collin Sexton scored 39 points and visiting Cleveland handed Houston its 12th straight loss. The Cavaliers have won four straight after losing their previous 10 games.
Notable
The Hawks fired coach Lloyd Pierce following a disappointing start to a season of heightened expectations.
Hawks President Travis Schlenk announced the move in a short statement released by the team.
The Hawks are 14-20 and 11th in the Eastern Conference. The Hawks last appeared in the playoffs in 2017.