Down double digits to an elite opponent early in the fourth quarter Monday, there was little reason to believe New Orleans had a comeback in it, particularly with Anthony Davis, Ryan Anderson and Jrue Holiday all sidelined by injuries. Yet after trailing by as many as 18 points – and down 10 early in the fourth quarter – the Pelicans managed to rally to beat the Atlantic Division-leading Raptors. New Orleans was down 56-44 at halftime, but used a 56-41 edge in the second half to win. The hosts later faced a 77-67 hole early in the fourth quarter, but surged at just the right time, using clutch baskets by reserves Norris Cole and Luke Babbitt in crunch time.
IT WAS OVER WHEN…
Toronto All-Star guard Kyle Lowry launched a three-point attempt from the left wing but only drew the side of the iron, enabling New Orleans to seal one of its best victories of the 2014-15 season. Alexis Ajinca gave the Pelicans the lead for good at 98-97 with a layup, followed by Jimmer Fredette’s two clutch free throws at 0:04. Fredette hadn’t played at all Monday until the final six seconds.
PELICANS PLAYER OF THE GAME
Luke Babbitt played arguably his best game of the entire 2014-15 regular season, finishing with 18 points and eight rebounds. More importantly, he got red-hot at the perfect time, sinking three momentous jumpers in the fourth quarter, part of his 10-point period. The left-handed sharpshooter was an ultra-efficient 7-for-9 from the field, highlighted by 4-for-5 three-point gunning.
PELICANS UNSUNG CONTRIBUTOR
Two nights after a very satisfying Pelicans debut against his ex-team, Miami, Norris Cole didn’t have a great first three quarters Monday, but he was gigantic in the fourth. The energetic reserve point guard piled up 13 points in the final stanza, sparking New Orleans to its 33-23 edge in the last dozen minutes. Cole also displayed some of his passing ability by finding Pelicans center Alexis Ajinca (16 points, 9 rebounds) for easy baskets in the second half. Overall, it’s been a superb first two games for Cole with his second NBA team.
QUOTES TO NOTE
“The bench played amazing tonight. From Norris Cole, to Alexis (Ajinca), to Luke (Babbitt). You’ve got to tip your hat to those guys. Without them coming in and producing the way they did, I don’t know if we get that win. Omer (Asik) played huge tonight. It was a gutsy team win.” – Quincy Pondexter
“It was big. Our big guns were down, but that’s the time to get better, rely on each other and work on our habits. I think we did a good job on relying on each other, with good team defense and good timely offense.” – Norris Cole on winning despite being without multiple key players
“We have to keep fighting. That was the thing I told the guys at halftime… (Toronto) is a really good team, but I thought if we stayed with it, we’d give ourselves a chance. Guys put their heads down. Once we started to get our spirit back, we had a chance to compete.” – Monty Williams on the mental aspect of winning Monday
BY THE NUMBERS
13-for-18: New Orleans shooting from the field in the fourth quarter. Two of the five misses were three-point attempts.
63.6: Percentage shooting from the field for New Orleans in the second half. The Pelicans made 21 of their 33 shots.
12: Assists by Tyreke Evans. In an oddity, Evans has had exactly 12 assists in five separate games since Jan. 25. His season high is 16, set Feb. 6 at Oklahoma City.
#TAKEFLIGHT QUESTION OF THE NIGHT
What was your favorite aspect(s) of the Pelicans’ comeback win over the Raptors?
From @BobbyAutin: the determination of the team. When NO ONE gave them a chance, they proved everyone wrong and won this game!
From @ewbsoccer: Improbability of it from well before tipoff, thru-out the game, well into the 4th quarter, & even on last shot
From @JJG585: Everyone contributed. Norris Cole a great pickup although confused why Miami dealt him.
From @bnastyd: Babbitt and Ajinca stepping up for Davis and Anderson. Mostly Babbitt shooting for 3 though.
From @shelbywmccarty: never quit. Kept playing the right way
From @jdperalta84: 2nd half defense got us this win! Cunningham, QP and N. Cole have all been great additions to our bench.