CJ McCollum played a crucial role in the New Orleans Pelicans win over the San Antonio Spurs. The veteran guard brought up the intensity from the start and led his team to a 103-113 win over the San Antonio Spurs in the play-in tournament showdown between the 9th and the 10th seed.
McCollum scored 27 of his 32 points in the first half and tried to be a calming presence for the Pels’ young core. Head Coach Willie Green played rookies Jose Alvalado, Herb Jones and Trey Murphy for a huge part of the fourth quarter in an elimination game.
“This is the start of something special, for sure,” McCollum told reporters. “You see the energy. Feel the energy. My mother is in town; I have some family in town.
When we go out to eat, you can feel the city is excited about basketball, as they should [be]. There’s a lot of talent here. We’re playing the game the right way. It’s going to be a lot of winning in our future.”
After starting the season 1-12 and not having superstar Zion Williamson for the season due to injury, New Orleans are one win away from the postseason. The Pelicans will play at the LA Clippers on Friday night for a chance to advance to the playoffs as the eighth seed and take on the top-seeded Phoenix Suns.
New Orleans trio of McCollum, Ingram and Valanciunas combined for 81 points to led the Pelicans to victory. Ingram shook foul trouble to add 27 points and center Jonas Valanciunas added 22 points and 14 rebounds in the Pels’ first postseason game since 2018.
”We’re just playing for each other,” Valanciunas said of McCollum and Ingram, via NBA.com. ”When things struggle, we need somebody to slow the game down, which (CJ) does. Next step is on Friday.
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