Some heroics took place the last few minutes to secure the New Orleans Pelicans a much-needed 113-106 victory over the Dallas Mavericks Wednesday night in New Orleans.
Pelicans veteran guard CJ McCollum scored 16 of his 32 points in the final four minutes of the game, finishing a perfect 4-for-4 from beyond the arc.
With the win, New Orleans snaps a two-game losing streak, improving to 21-11 at home and 32-34 overall. The Pelicans now sit at 10th place in the Western Conference with a one-game lead over Oklahoma City for the final play-in spot.
“I thought CJ (McCollum) was huge down the stretch of the game. He made big shot after big shot and that is what it takes for us to have an opportunity to win games like this,” Pelicans head coach Wille Green said. “Collectively, all of our guys just followed the game plan to a T.”
Early in the first quarter, Dallas went on a 9-2 run to take a 14-6 lead and force the Pelicans to use their first timeout of the game. New Orleans responded with a run of their own, taking a 21-20 lead with 2:41 left in the first. To start the second quarter, New Orleans went on a 12-2 run, extending their lead to 10 and forcing the Mavericks to call a timeout with 8:07 remaining in the second quarter.
New Orleans closed the first half on an 18-8 run and took a 59-43 lead into the locker room. In the third quarter, Dallas bounced back with a run of their own, cutting the Pelicans’ lead to 69-61 wit 5:13 left to play in the third frame.
The Pelicans would then close out the third quarter on a 14-4 run, moving the score to 83-65.
With the loss, Dallas moves to 34-33 overall and 12-20 on the road this season. Mavericks point guard Kyrie Irving notched a team-high 27 points, shooting 10-of-24 from the field and 4-of-11 from deep range. Luka Dončić was held to just 15 points on 4-of-15 shooting.
Next up for the Pelicans will be a Saturday night matchup against Oklahoma City at 7:30 p.m. CT.
