NBA Daily: San Antonio Spoils Zion’s Debut, as Spurs Beat Pelicans 121-117
By Reylan Loberternos
PhilBoxing.com
Fri, 24 Jan 2020
Boracay Island, Philippines – Nothing’s certain but death and taxes… and the Spurs. With all eyes glued on the nationally-televised debut game of rookie sensation and first overall pick Zion Williamson, the San Antonio Spurs still managed to fly under the radar, as they beat the New Orleans Pelicans 121-117 on Wednesday night (Thursday morning, Philippine time) at the Smoothie King Center in New Orleans, Louisiana.
Despite the huge road victory, – their third straight, to be exact – the Spurs were still reduced to an afterthought. The buzz was all about Zion Williamson’s 22 points in 18 minutes that included a stretch when he scored 17 straight points in the final frame, to rally his team and momentarily take the lead from the eventual winners.
LaMarcus Aldridge led all scorers with 32 on a 12-for-20 field goal shooting. He was also the top rebounder with 14, to go with 2 assists, 1 steal, and 2 blocks. DeMar DeRozan added 20 points for the Spurs, who are now at 8th place in the Western Conference team standings with 20 wins and 23 losses.
Brandon Ingram shared team-high honors for New Orleans with 22, on top of 3 boards, 2 dimes, and 1 interception. Lonzo Ball finished with a near triple-double of 14 points, 8 rebounds, and 12 assists. He also had 3 steals for the Pelicans, who dropped to a 17-28 win-loss card for 12th spot in the Western Conference team standings.
The Pelicans will next face the Denver Nuggets on Friday night (Saturday morning, Philippine time).
Meanwhile, the Spurs will travel home to face the Phoenix Suns on the same night.
How they scored:
Spurs 121 – Aldridge 32, DeRozan 20, Murray 13, White 12, Forbes 11, Mills 8, Belinelli 8, Poeltl 6, Walker IV 6, Lyles 5
Pelicans 117 – Ingram 22, Williamson 22, Ball 14, Holiday 12, Favors 11, Redick 10, Hart 10, Hayes 9, Moore 5, Alexander-Walker 2
AROUND THE LEAGUE:
(Road Team – Home Team)
PHI 95 – 107 TOR
SAC 106 – 127 DET
OKC 120 – 114 ORL
LAL 100 – 92 NYK
MEM 95 – 119 BOS
WSH 129 – 134 MIA (OT)
LAC 95 – 102 ATL
MIN 110 – 17 CHI
DEN 105 – 121 HOU
IND 112 – 87 PHX
UTAH 129 – 96 GSW
GAMES TODAY, JANUARY 24, 2020 CT
WSH @ CLE 8:00 AM CT
LAL @ BKN 9:00 AM CT
DAL @ POR 11:30 AM CT
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