New Orleans Pelicans (20-44) beat Sacramento Kings (14-50) 133-123 on the road on Thursday, March 5 in a shootout, with the two teams combining for 256 points.
The game, quarter by quarter
The Kings had the better start, winning the first 30-26 to lead by 4 after one. The Pelicans moved in front with a 41-33 second quarter, carrying a 4-point lead into halftime.
The Pelicans won the third 38-28 to create some separation, taking a 14-point lead into the fourth. The Kings took the fourth 32-28; the Pelicans held on for a 133-123 regulation win.
What decided it
The Pelicans grabbed 30.4% of their own misses, while the Kings recovered 20.8%. The Pelicans made 23.5 free throws per 100 field-goal attempts, compared with 15.2 for the Kings. The second chances kept adding up.
The Kings did win one battle, ball security: TOV% of 6.6 against 10.3. The Pelicans made up for it elsewhere.
At roughly 107 possessions per team, the Pelicans produced 124.9 points per 100 possessions to 115.5 for the Kings.
Who made the difference
Precious Achiuwa was the game's biggest individual force for SAC: 29 pts, 12 reb, 5 ast on 12-16 shooting. His Game Score of 30.9 led everyone. His team was -1 with him on the floor.
Trey Murphy III led the Pelicans with 21 pts, 7 reb, 4 ast on 7-14 shooting, good for a 19.4 Game Score.
Precious Achiuwa (29 pts, 12 reb, 5 ast), Russell Westbrook (19 pts, 2 reb, 10 ast), and Drew Eubanks (15 pts, 11 reb, 0 ast) each recorded a double-double.
What it means
The pre-game Win Meter had it close to a coin flip, at about 48% for the Pelicans.
Across the last 5 meetings in our records, Sacramento Kings lead 3-2.
The Pelicans are now 20-44, and the Kings are 14-50. The Pelicans last five before this game: W-W-W-L-L.
Written automatically by Tip Off Live software from box score data. Ratings and probabilities are our own model estimates.