Wizards (17-14), Pelicans (15-16)
WASHINGTON – As soon as New Orleans got back in Tuesday’s game after falling behind big early, Washington responded emphatically, regaining a large cushion. In a seesaw game, the Wizards went up by 25 points in the first half, but the Pelicans clawed back into a tie only a few minutes into the third quarter. From there, Washington dominated, winning the third quarter by a 32-15 tally, en route to a convincing interconference victory.
Anthony Davis led the New Orleans offense with 37 points, going 14 of 15 from the foul line.
IT WAS OVER WHEN…
New Orleans misfired on two straight three-point attempts, then Washington collected the rebound and took advantage of a 4-on-3, resulting in a Mike Scott dunk with 7:36 left. The Scott slam gave the Wizards a 100-80 lead.
PELICANS PLAYER OF THE GAME
Davis’ repeated trips to the charity stripe in the second quarter were a key to New Orleans rallying from a terrible start and making it tight briefly. Unfortunately, Davis banged up his right wrist and missed the early part of the third quarter, when Washington was able to regain control and never relinquish it.
QUOTES TO NOTE
“I thought, once again, we’re kind of singing the same song every night. We look at our turnovers and, you know we have 16 for 25 points. It’s hard to beat a team, especially of that caliber if you’re going to turn the ball over 16 times because, you know, some of those times you’re putting the ball in John Wall’s hand and you're not going to be able to contain him, especially when they’re live turnovers.” – Alvin Gentry on turnovers again being a major issue for the Pelicans
“No effort man. That team (Washington) came out and just wanted it more. I felt like we just kind of went through the motions as a team and they just wanted it more, period.” – DeMarcus Cousins (26 points, 13 rebounds) on the loss
BY THE NUMBERS
5/20: New Orleans three-point shooting. After an incredible run to open the month, the Pelicans had a rare off night from long distance.
40-14: Pelicans advantage in attempts from the foul line. Despite that massive edge, the Wizards won partly because they shot much better from the field (50 percent) and three-point range (14 of 35). The three-point accuracy was aided greatly by the hosts creating open looks off NOLA turnovers.