LOS ANGELES – Twenty one three-pointers and dominant shooting from Trey Murphy and Brandon Ingram broke down the Clippers’ defense, and carried the Pelicans past Los Angeles, 131-110.
Ten threes from Murphy and 32 points from Ingram critically hurt the Clippers in more ways than one.
Shortly after an elbow to the face from Ingram, Kawhi Leonard headed to the locker room with four minutes left in the third quarter. Leonard did not return to the court for the rest of the game with a facial contusion.
Before exiting Leonard went 4-16 from the field and 0-6 in threes in 27 minutes.
“It’s gonna happen. It’s part of the game,” responded head coach Tyronn Lue to Leonard’s otherwise off night. “We shot 52% and 45 (percent) from three, but it still didn’t look good. It was a – it was a nasty flow to the game.”
According to Lue there has been no update on Leonard’s condition. Before exiting Leonard went 4-16 from the field and 0-6 in threes in 27 minutes.
Turning point: New Orleans opened the game making seven of eight three-pointers to put themselves up 37-26 at the end of the first quarter. Two minutes into the second quarter that 11-point deficit grew to 19. The Clippers could not catch a lead at all this game and the constant made threes from New Orleans coasted them all the way to the 131-110 victory.
What it means: Saturday’s loss plus the Phoenix Suns’ win over Philadelphia the same day bumps the Clippers from fourth in the Western Conference to tie with Golden State in sixth. The Clippers are now tied with Golden State. Los Angeles has just seven regular season games left, including its final bout against fourth seeded Phoenix.
Hits: Bones Hyland followed up his impressive play against the Thunder on Thursday with 18 points, two rebounds and seven assists. Hyland also forced five turnovers in 24 minutes. Russell Westbrook and Eric Gordon (who started in place of Paul George) combined for 29 points on the court.
Misses: Aside from three-point shooting, an aggressive Pelicans’ defense forced the Clippers to struggle in the paint, scoring 38 compared to New Orleans’ 54.
Up next: The Clippers will move on to conclude their homestead against the Chicago Bulls. The two teams last faced off in January where Los Angeles captured a 108-103 home win. The Bulls (35-38) sit as the tenth seed in the Eastern Conference and are coming fresh off of a 124-96 win over the Portland Trailblazers.
