OKLAHOMA CITY – By halftime Saturday, the entire planned starting frontcourt for New Orleans at the start of 2019-20 was out of commission, with Brandon Ingram (head injury) joining Zion Williamson and Derrick Favors in being sidelined since mid-October. Ingram apparently was inadvertently struck in the head on a second-quarter play.
Playing without that trio, the Pelicans hung in the game for a long stretch, but the Thunder ultimately gained some separation in the final couple minutes. New Orleans is still seeking its first road victory of 2019-20, with a two-game trip concluding Monday in Brooklyn.
“Hopefully he’s good and we can get him back soon,” guard Josh Hart said of Ingram, a teammate for all three of Hart’s NBA seasons.
Turnovers and execution proved costly for New Orleans in the fourth quarter, helping Oklahoma City take command and not have to sweat out crunch time.
“This is the NBA – you can’t just go out and play hard and expect to win,” Hart summarized. “We have to execute. Being young, that’s not an excuse. We’ve got to stick to the game plan, have better attention to detail, better focus. It doesn’t take a 10-year vet to be good at those things.”
IT WAS OVER WHEN…
OKC’s Dennis Schroder picked off a New Orleans pass and drew a foul going the other way with 58 seconds left. The point guard drained two free throws to give the Thunder a nine-point lead and finally some late-game breathing room. Schroder tacked on another fast-break layup after a steal to make it 115-104.
PELICANS PLAYER OF THE GAME
Starting for a third consecutive game in place of Favors (knee soreness), Jahlil Okafor responded with a double-double, registering 15 points and 12 rebounds in 29 minutes. Off the bench, Hart also contributed a double-double consisting of 12 points and 15 rebounds, while JJ Redick notched 17 points.
BY THE NUMBERS
116: Fewest points New Orleans had scored in any game this season prior to Saturday. The combination of a slower pace and the Pelicans shooting just 43 percent from the field contributed greatly to the low output.
7: Fourth-quarter Pelicans turnovers. Those miscues led to 10 of the Thunder’s 21 points in the period.
13/22: New Orleans foul shooting, another costly area, at just 59 percent. The Pelicans did not make a free throw in the fourth quarter, while being outscored 21-18.
#SATURDAYSCORER
For all 14 Saturday games throughout New Orleans’ regular season, we’ll be selecting a Pelicans player we think will most exceed his season scoring average for that day’s game. Daniel Sallerson selected JJ Redick, while Jim Eichenhofer picked Jrue Holiday. In a fan poll among four other candidates, Lonzo Ball was chosen. The second Saturday contest was won by Sallerson (Redick nearly doubled his first-five-games season average with 17 points), making the season standings: Fans 1, Daniel 1, Jim 0. On Oct. 26, the fans picked a winner by going with Ball (season-high 18 points) at Houston. Sallerson and Eichenhofer cannot repeat a player among any of the first seven Saturday games. On Oct. 26, Sallerson tabbed Nickeil Alexander-Walker; Eichenhofer took JJ Redick.
