CJ McCollum scored 22 points, Jonas Valanciunas and Brandon Ingram added 19 apiece and the New Orleans Pelicans rolled to a 123-95 victory over the reeling Los Angeles Lakers on Sunday night.
The 28-point margin of victory is the largest in franchise history by the Pelicans over the Lakers, surpassing their 139-117 win in 2018.McCollum has six straight 20-point games. He is averaging 28 points in his seven games with the Pelicans since being acquired from Portland on Feb. 8. He had nine points in the third quarter when New Orleans went on a 26-7 run over four-plus minutes to put the game away.
Valanciunas also had 10 rebounds for his 37th double-double of the season, which is tied for third in the NBA. Ingram, who played for the Lakers for three seasons, also had eight assists. He had six points during the last six minutes of the first half as the Pelicans went on a 17-4 run to grab a 51-37 lead with 35 seconds remaining. LeBron James banked in a 3-pointer on the ensuing possession to pull the Lakers within 51-40 at halftime.
James led the Lakers with 32 points and Russell Westbrook added 16. Los Angeles has dropped two straight and five of its last six to fall a season-worst six games under .500 at 27-33.The Lakers committed 23 turnovers, including 16 in the first half. Los Angeles’ night could be summed up during the third quarter when DeAndre Jordan threw a cross-court pass that hit a fan in the first row of the seats along the baseline.
Lakers: Dwight Howard finished with 11 rebounds. He reached 10,400 career defensive rebounds midway through the second quarter.