April 16th NBA Game Boxscore Breakdowns

The Lakers erased an eight-point first quarter deficit and took a 10-point advantage into halftime. The Pelicans eventually clawed all the way back to get within two with 38.1 seconds remaining before Los Angeles sealed the victory with a pair of free throws apiece from Austin Reaves and Anthony Davis. New Orleans took the loss despite outshooting L.A. by a 46.2 percent - 41.7 percent margin and winning the battle of the boards, 50-41. The Lakers did commit only eight turnovers, while their 29 free throws and 89.7 percent success rate from the charity stripe notably outpaced the Pelicans' respective 15 and 73.3 percent figures in those categories. LeBron James led the Lakers with 23 points, adding nine rebounds, nine assists, three steals and two blocks. D'Angelo Russell furnished 21 points, six assists, one steal and one block. Davis generated a 20-point, 15-rebound double-double that included three blocks and one steal. Austin Reaves supplied 16 points, six assists and five rebounds. Rui Hachimura netted 13 points. Zion Williamson paced the Pelicans with 40 points, complementing them with 11 rebounds, five assists, one steal and one block. Trey Murphy totaled 12 points, four rebounds, two assists, one steal and one block. Brandon Ingram recorded 11 points, four rebounds and four assists. Larry Nance Jr. and Jose Alvarado generated matching 10-point efforts while tallying 12 rebounds and seven assists, respectively. Herbert Jones matched his teammates' scoring and added two steals.

This win for Sacramento will send them into an elimination game to decide the eight-seed in the West. They'll travel to face the New Orleans Pelicans on Friday to determine who plays the Oklahoma City Thunder in the first-round of the NBA Playoffs. The Pelicans have beaten the Kings in all five matchups this year. The Kings never gave up the lead after a 31-22 first quarter, completing their blowout win with a 64-44 second half. Sacramento recorded 28 assists to eight turnovers, while Golden State had 19 assists to 16 turnovers. Stephen Curry led the Warriors with 22 points and four rebounds. Draymond Green and Andrew Wiggins scored 12 points apiece. Klay Thompson missed all 10 of his shots to go scoreless. Keegan Murray led the Kings with 32 points and nine rebounds. De'Aaron Fox tallied 24 points, four rebounds and six assists. Domantas Sabonis finished with 16 points, 12 rebounds and seven assists, while Keon Ellis had 15 points, four rebounds, five assists, three steals and three blocks.