NEW ORLEANS PELICANS AT OKLAHOMA CITY THUNDER
Oklahoma City leads series 1-0
After a physical, hard-fought, low-scoring opening game of the 1 vs. 8 series in the Western Conference, New Orleans will try to avoid falling behind 0-2 on the road, a deficit that relatively few lower-seeded NBA teams have overcome. The Thunder and Pelicans averaged 120.1 and 115.1 points during the regular season, respectively, but nothing resembling that type of production occurred Sunday, with Oklahoma City holding on at the buzzer for a 94-92 victory, despite shooting 44 percent from the field (the Pelicans finished at 39 percent). New Orleans was held under 100 points in a game for only the 10th time all season, though one of those instances came against Oklahoma City (season-low 83 points on Jan. 26). It was only the fourth time in 2023-24 that the Thunder failed to reach the century mark in scoring.
Players to Watch
PELICANS
Trey Murphy
The third-year forward continued to open eyes across the country in Game 1, making several deep threes among a 5/12 night from beyond the arc, scoring a team-best 21 points. With the Thunder packing the paint and playing rugged defense, Murphy is sometimes the Pelicans’ best release valve, able to space the floor and beat rim-protecting opponents from 30 feet.
Brandon Ingram
Wednesday will be just his fifth game back from a knee injury. He’s still trying to find a rhythm, shooting 5/17 from the field in Game 1, with defender Lu Dort draped all over him. Ingram was held to 12 points and three assists – his passing was a telling barometer for NOLA’s success during the regular season (Pelicans went 24-12 when he had six-plus dimes, but 14-14 in his other games).
CJ McCollum
Like Ingram, he missed some shots in Game 1 he’s generally been making all season, particularly on the road during the second half of the regular season. Now in his 10th trip to the playoffs of an 11-year NBA career, McCollum scored 20 points, but went 2/9 from three-point range, misfiring on a difficult attempt by a hair at the buzzer.
THUNDER
Shai Gilgeous-Alexander
Oklahoma City media members noted that the MVP candidate expressed some rare visible frustration during Game 1, amid a 11/24 performance from the field. New Orleans did a decent job of keeping SGA off the foul line, though his seven charity tosses nearly matched the Pelicans’ entire team total (the visitors were 7/9).
Jalen Williams
The second-year forward was a factor across the board Sunday, registering 19 points, seven rebounds, four assists and two steals. He also delivered some barking – it’s become a thing among Thunder players – to the raucous Paycom Center crowd after a few inspiring plays.
The bench
Thunder head coach Mark Daigneault opted to go with an 11-man rotation in Game 1, sticking with his ultra-successful plan of attack from the regular season that yielded 57 wins. OKC’s reserves outscored their NOLA counterparts by a 24-18 margin, but also logged significantly more minutes (75-57).
Previous Game Starting Lineups
NEW ORLEANS (8TH SEED IN WEST)
Sunday Game 1 loss at Oklahoma City
CJ McCollum, Herb Jones, Brandon Ingram, Trey Murphy, Jonas Valanciunas
Notes: The last time the Pelicans reached the playoffs (2022), they lost Game 1 at top-seeded Phoenix, but responded with a Game 2 victory over the Suns, one of the best games of Ingram’s career (37 points, 11 rebounds, nine assists). … Compared to 2022, Murphy has seen the largest change in his role among all Pelicans players. He logged 44 minutes Sunday, after never playing more than 26 minutes as a full-time reserve during the series vs. Phoenix. … Valanciunas’ 20 rebounds Sunday were five shy of the franchise record for boards in a playoff game, which was set by Valanciunas in Game 1 of the 2022 Suns series.
OKLAHOMA CITY (1ST SEED IN WEST)
Sunday Game 1 win vs. New Orleans
Josh Giddey, Shai Gilgeous-Alexander, Lu Dort, Jalen Williams, Chet Holmgren
Notes: The Thunder were playing their first playoff game since the 2020 Orlando bubble and first in their home arena since 2019. OKC is seeking its first playoff-series triumph since 2016, Kevin Durant’s final season on the plains. … Gilgeous-Alexander’s 28 points Sunday represented the second-most he’s scored in his 14 career playoff games. He notched 31 points vs. Houston in Game 2 of a first-round series in 2020. Gilgeous-Alexander has logged at least 35 minutes in all eight of his Thunder playoff appearances. … The Thunder improved to 10-2 at home since March 1 with Sunday’s victory.
Keys to the Game
EFFICIENCY ON OFFENSE
Across the board, the Pelicans must make offensive improvements in Game 2. On Sunday, they shot just 38.5 percent from the field, 28.2 percent on three-pointers and only made nine trips to the foul line. If those first two numbers had occurred during the regular season, that would’ve ranked as the team’s seventh- and 13th-worst shooting performances, respectively. The Pelicans also did not have a game of single-digit attempts from the charity stripe in any of their 82 games.
CAPITALIZE ON SECOND CHANCES
Step 1 was effectively displaying rebounding dominance over Oklahoma City, including an 18-8 edge in offensive boards. Step 2 is converting more of those additional possessions into points. The Pelicans had several late-game opportunities to do so, but couldn’t put the ball in the hoop during some critical sequences.
MATCHUP TO WATCH
At starting center, Game 1 featured a fascinating head-to-head encounter between Valanciunas and Holmgren. Both players recorded double-doubles, with the veteran Valanciunas powering his way to 13 points and 20 rebounds, while rookie Holmgren posted 15 points and 11 rebounds, along with five valuable blocks. His shot-blocking was one factor in a bad night for New Orleans shooting-wise in the paint.
Gameday update: Pelicans at Thunder, Game 2 (4/24/2024) - NBA.com
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