On April 18, Beijing time, 99-110, the Pelicans suffered a black opening and did not qualify for the first place in the upset league. However, in this game, the team's big center Valanciunas shot 7 of 21 from the field, got 18 points and 25 rebounds, including 13 rebounds in the frontcourt, brushing the record.
The game faced league number one, and the Pelicans dug a hole in the first half, trailing by 19 points with only 34 points at halftime. However, Valanciunas had eight points and 15 rebounds in the first half. Back in the second half, the Pelicans briefly narrowed the gap to single digits, but Paul broke out in the fourth quarter and took the game away.
However, Valanciunas' performance gave the Pelicans hope of a counterattack. In this game, he had 18 points and 25 rebounds, giving the Pelicans the advantage of the interior line.
Valanciunas is also a serial brush record:
1. He successfully surpassed Anthony Davis (19) to set a single-game rebounding record in the team's history.
2. This is the first time in pelicans history that a player has grabbed 20+ rebounds in a single game.
3. He also set a new career playoff rebounds record, the original record was 21 rebounds.
4) He is also the first player since 1975 to get a rebounding double 12 (frontcourt rebound + backcourt rebound).
5. His 13 frontcourt rebounds also set a new career single-game frontcourt rebounding record.