New Orleans Pelicans game recap: Still undefeated

The New Orleans Pelicans overcame a sluggish start defensively to claw their way to an unlikely victory as they defeat the Brooklyn Nets 117-115 to remain undefeated.

The New Orleans Pelicans improved to 4-0 after a hard-fought, improbable victory over the Nets. The game saw the Pelicans overcome a five point deficit with less than a minute remaining.

Key stat of the game…

11. The Pelicans have been impressive so far this season in protecting the basketball. They are in the top five in the league in the least amount of turnovers committed a game. By contrast, Brooklyn is in the bottom five and their turnover with under 10 seconds left allowed Jrue Holiday to hit the go ahead basket with two seconds left.

In a game where the Nets outscored the Pelicans by 30 from beyond the three-point line and connected on a staggering 19 three-point makes, it was imperative the Pelicans protected the game so as not to let the game slip away. The Pelicans found themselves down by double-digits in the first half, so protecting the ball and executing on offense allowed them to get back in the game.

Turning Point…

In a game where you scratched and clawed your way back to the very end, there were many peaks and valleys throughout the course of the night. Obviously, the turnover by D’Angelo Russell loomed large as inexplicably the Pelicans did not foul even though they were down by one with the clock ticketing precious seconds.

There was also the bizarre events near the Brooklyn bench in which Ed Davis appeared to push Solomon Hill as he approached. That garnered a technical foul and Jrue was able to knock the free throw down, extending the lead to two with a couple of seconds remaining.

All in all, the Pelicans were able to execute and keep their composure down the stretch, while the Nets could not.

Player of the Game…

Is there any doubt about this one? After a slow offensive start to the season, Jrue Holiday came out aggressive from the tip-off scoring 16 in the first half. His previous high for a game this season was only 15 and last game against the Los Angeles Clippers he only scored eight.

Jrue’s aggressiveness showed in his willingness to take the final shot. Not having a timeout left, Jrue quickly set up a pick and roll in order to match up against the big, where he danced to his left and drained his patented mid-range jumper. He also calmly stepped up and knocked down the huge technical free-throw that extended the lead to two.

Not only was Jrue the leading scorer on the team with 26 points, his defense down the stretch on D’Angelo Russell proved key as Russell was had made six three-pointers in the game leading up to the 4th quarter. He didn’t make any in the final frame.

Some how, some way this team keeps finding ways to win. That’s ok as this team will be battle-tested as they navigate through the tough Western Conference. The next test will be Saturday night as the Utah Jazz come to town.