By Leobert Julian A. de la Peña
The New Orleans Pelicans continued their winning ways on the Sacramento Kings and handed them a 33-point embarrassment, 133-100, during their Western Conference duel in the ongoing NBA season last January 8, 2024.
With the lopsided win, the Pelicans just extended its undefeated winning streak on Sacramento to four straight games this 2024 season.
From the get-go, it was all New Orleans as they immediately blew the game wide-open with a 33-21 advantage at the end of the first quarter.
Just when the Kings thought they could inch closer after scoring straight baskets down the block when the second frame kicked off, the Pelicans snowballed to another dominating offensive show and ended the first half with a 25-point lead.
Things got worse in the third quarter for Sacramento after New Orleans limited them to just 14 points in the frame alone.
The Kings tried to salvage one final offensive run after inserting a high-octane small lineup but the huge cushion that the Pelicans built in the first three quarters was too much to handle for Sacramento.
In just 27 minutes of action, veteran shooting guard CJ McCollum put on a show for New Orleans and dropped 30 big points.
McCollum was unconscious offensively and wrapped up the convincing win with an efficient 11/16 shooting from the field.
The former backcourt mate of Damian Lillard put on a three-point shooting clinic and drained seven out of his 10 total attempts from downtown.
Aside from McCollum, New Orleans’ balanced attack also proved to be too much for the Kings as six other players hit the double-digit scoring mark.
The Pelicans received 15 markers apiece from Brandon Ingram and Jonas Valanciunas, 14 from Dyson Daniels, 12 from Jordan Hawkins, and 11 each from Trey Murphy and Naji Marshall.
On the other hand, Sacramento had a poor shooting night, only converting 38 out of their 91 total attempts from the field.
De’Aaron Fox only had three points on 1/10 shooting, his second-lowest scoring output since their Toronto Game last October 9, 2023.
New Orleans will aim to extend its winning streak on January 11, 2024, as they square off against Stephen Curry and the Golden State Warriors while the Kings will look to bounce back on January 10, 2024, against the Detroit Pistons.
