Lakers keep Pelicans at bay, forge playoff series vs Nuggets

MANILA, Philippines -- The Los Angeles Lakers punched a ticket to the NBA Playoffs after escaping the New Orleans Pelicans, 110-106, Wednesday morning (Manila time) at the Smoothie King Center in New Orleans.

LeBron James carried the load for the Lakers as he flirted with a triple-double, finishing with 23 points, nine assists and nine rebounds.

The Lakers led by 11, 89-78, in the fourth quarter after a 3-pointer by D’Angelo Russell.

Slowly, though, the Pelicans clawed back thanks to the Herculean effort of Zion Williamson.

Williamson was able to tie the game up at 95 with 3:19 left, but he looked like he was hurt after scoring his 40th point.

He had to head back to the locker room as he showed his frustration.

The two teams were able trade baskets in the succeeding possessions, as they were kept on a 99-all deadlock with 1:31 to go.

Davis finished an alley-oop play to give Los Angeles a 101-99 lead. Larry Nance Jr. split his free throws, and on the other end, Russell sank a dagger trey that pushed the lead to four, 104-100, with 51.3 seconds remaining.

A jumper by CJ McCollum helped New Orleans inch closer, 102-104, but free throws by Davis and Austin Reaves iced the game.

Russell and Davis added 21 and 20 points, respectively. The former had six assists, while the latter had 15 boards.

Williamson added 40 points, 11 rebounds and five assists in 36 minutes of play. Trey Murphy III added 12 markers.

Los Angeles will be playing the reigning NBA champions Denver Nuggets in the first round, a rematch of last season’s Western Conference Finals.

New Orleans, on the other hand, will be facing the winner of the play-in game between the Golden State Warriors and the Sacramento Kings.