This was a classic tale of two halves for the New Orleans Pelicans (42-35) as they beat the Golden State Warriors (63-15) 103-100. The Pelicans started the game off being very much like a team that doesn’t make the playoffs, a team the Pelicans have looked like before. The Pelicans struggled mightily at the end of quarters, including ending the half allowing the Warriors to go on a 14-5 run. In the second half, the Pelicans opened the half on a 10-0 run (with Omer Asik scoring six of those points. Warriors center Andrew Bogut picked up his 4^th foul, and the Pelicans outscored the Warriors 36-23. The Pelicans won a close game, with solid play in the last two minutes. It’s the kind of game the Pelicans have won this year, against the Oklahoma City Thunder, the Dallas Mavericks, and now the Warriors. Huge win. Will definitely be looked at as a key late-season win if the Pelicans advance.

Sub-Plot

Before the game, a rumor started circulating around via some sources of ours that the Warriors were talking about tonight’s game as a “scrimmage”. That made it through to Ethan Straus of ESPN, who asked Dante Cunningham and Anthony Davis about it, both players deflected any effect that it had on the game, but did confirm that they had heard that. Don’t be surprised if this becomes a reoccurring subplot if these two teams meet in the playoffs.

Watch Party

Bourbon Street Shots will be hosting a Watch Party tomorrow at Tracey’s on 2604 Magazine Street. Come check out us writers as we watch the Pelicans take on the Memphis Grizzlies, that will surely be a beer-inducing roast beef po-boy ingesting time.

Quotes

“Just kept shooting, no one shot is going to take me out of my game.”

-Davis on having a much better second half.

“Well it was a big win for us. It was a good opportunity for us to get better as a team. Playing against another high-level team and for us to move up in the standings.”

-Norris Cole on the win.

Warriors v. Pels 4/7/15

Pre-game

• Warriors 33-4 when outrebounding opponents this season.
• Warriors have only had fewer assists than their opponent 11 times this year. (4-7 in those games.)
• Warriors have shot 49.3% from the field against the Pelicans this year. (40% from beyond the arc.)
• #Thathastochangetonight
• Pelicans have lost 10 straight games against the Warriors (dating back to 4/24/12 in Oakland.)
• With a win tonight, the Pelicans will have their 1st winning season since 10-11 season. (Pels went 46-36 that year, making the playoffs)
• Quincy Pondexter averaging 11.6 points per game on 48.5% from the field (53.1% from beyond the arc) over the last 12 games

1Q

• Q-Pon with the first bucket of the game, a nice 3.
• Some miscommunication and lazy passing by the Pels to start the game. 7-4 Warriors.
• 7:59 Cole in for Evans at the 8:19 mark. Immediately draws a foul on Draymond Green, his second of the game.
• So many unforced errors to start this game.
• Davis and Andrew Bogut having a hell of a battle down in the post. Matched up with each other since Green has been out.
• 3:50 Pels seeing some good ball movement. Gordon with the and-1.
• Couple of really bad sequences to end the quarter. Pelicans down 27-19 after 1Q.

2Q

• 5:04 Good defense but Q-Pon needs to get that steal or the Pels need to get that rebound, Thompson isn’t missing too many baseline threes.
• Some switching issues with Q-Pon and Evans when the latter got stuck on a pick. Easy 2 for Barnes.
• Mental lapses doing the Pelicans in, trailing 52-39.
• Great play by Davis to steal and lead Q-Pon for the monster dunk. Q-Pon wanted the and-1.
• As exciting as that play was, Curry let the air out of the balloon with a beautiful three. 55-43

3Q

• Monster stop by the Pelicans. Great Defense by Q-Pon and Davis. 59-57 Warriors.
• Pelicans score the first ten points of the half, six coming from Omer Asik.
• Pels came out to play this half. Know there season is on the line.
• Bogut picking up his fourth foul loses some of its meaning if Monty takes Asik out with him. (like he doesn’t want the advantage.)
• Anderson holding on to the ball for too long one possession before passing it, then a million little fakes that don’t work before missing a contested mid-range jumper on a second possession. 72-67.
• Beautiful drive and score by Evans, falls down, gets up and hustles back court, by to my befuddlement, tries to jump over Curry, who is standing still. 74-74
• Pels are 34-5 when leading after 3. (79-78 Pels)

4Q

• Why do we post Anderson on Andre Iguodala instead of Davis against Lee? I ask before Anderson banks in a shot. 83-78
• 10:05 Big time players make big time plays, Davis with a beautiful And-1 against Lee. Lee can’t cover that man.
• 6:06 Warriors playing like the big kids on a street ball court, that know they can win the game (after that Thompson fadeaway three.) Don’t matter though, Pels get the win, it’s a win.
• 5:36 AD 7/8 shooting this half after going 2/10 in the first half.
• 3:05 horrible execution after that timeout, resulting in a turnover and layup 95-92.
• Gordon makes up for it by driving and kicking to Q-Pon for the three. 95-95.
• Would like to see Davis get the ball more in the last two minutes. Go out with or player.
• Great steal by Tyreke
• Why Anderson, Why?
• Too many things going on. AD must get the ball every possession though.
• 1:12 up five, playoff teams win these kind of games. Let ‘em have it.
• Pels have a foul to give. 15.5 seconds left. Up 101-100 after Reke makes one of two. GS ball.
• YMCA with 15 seconds left was a weird choice (I may by hyperventilating.)
• Great rebound by Anthony Davis, makes both free throws. 103-100. (Davis gets the double-double with that board.)

Huge win for the Pels. They now stand a half-game ahead of the Oklahoma City Thunder, and hold the tiebreaker. While there are some tough games ahead, the Pelicans control their own destiny, as Dion Waiters said “We control our own destiny, they control their own destiny.”