The sun fights the pelicans again
Chris Paul, 36, once again showed his ability on the playoff stage. In the face of the Pelicans' constant pursuit, he scored 17 consecutive points in the final quarter to lead the team to a good start. It's a small-ball era, paul is arguably the last glory of a traditional defender, and this season, perhaps his best chance to storm the championship. The Suns have a league-first record, and looking at the entire West, the only team that can pose a threat to them is the Golden State Warriors. The Grizzlies are powerful but inexperienced.
However, the Suns only got one victory, and if they want to win the championship, they need 16 wins, and the road needs to be taken step by step. This game, against the New Orleans Pelicans, all the Phoenix Suns need to do is not repeat the mistakes of the past, it is impossible to let Paul fight to that point in the first round of the playoffs.
Booker carried the team
Despite losing the last game, the Pelicans found confidence, and it turned out that as long as they worked hard, the gap between them and the Suns did not reach that desperate level. At the beginning of the first quarter, Ingram stepped forward, with 11 points, three rebounds and three assists on 4-of-7 shooting, McCollum also had 7 points, 4 rebounds and 1 assist, Varan had 4 points and 6 rebounds, Jones and Murphy each hit a three-pointer, the team bombed 30 points in a single quarter, while the Suns only scored 28 points, and Paul did not score one point on 0-of-2 shooting.
Booker was also unstoppable, shooting 6-of-10, 4-of-6 from three-point range, and had 16 points, 1 rebound and 1 assist in a single quarter, successfully carrying the team. After returning from the second quarter, Nance Jr. scored consecutive points to help the Pelicans maintain a slight lead, but then Paul and Bridges hit consecutive three-point shots, and the Suns successfully rebounded by one point. The two teams then tied the score, and Booker hit two consecutive three-pointers to help the Suns take an eight-point lead. At the crucial moment, Murphy and McCollum hit three consecutive points, and the Pelicans managed to narrow the point difference to two points.
But who would have thought that in the final moments of the game, the Sun only had 3.3 seconds left, the serve was given to Booker at the top of the arc, and Booker, who was standing in the midfield, directly shot a three-point shot from a long distance and hit the whistle. At the end of the half, the Suns led the Pelicans by five points 61-56, and the point difference was not large.
The Pelicans tried their best
The first half of the game can only be described in one word, that is, it is not divided. Although the Suns are the league's first-record team, their only reliable offensive point in the first half is Booker, as the team's star, Booker shot 12 of 18 in the half, 7 of 10 from three-point range, 31 points, 2 rebounds and 1 assist, one person scored more than the rest of the team combined, unparalleled personal performance. But in addition to Booker, the Suns only had Bridges scored in double figures, with 10 points, 4 rebounds and 2 assists, and the third highest score was only 4 points.
Paul didn't make a difference, and of course, the feel was not ideal, with 3 points, 1 rebound and 7 assists on 1-of-5 shooting without a single turnover. The Pelicans really tried their best, and it wasn't their fault for being behind, it was just that Booker really couldn't hold back. McCollum had 15 points, six rebounds and four assists, Ingram also had 11 points, four rebounds and three assists, Jones and Nance Jr. both had seven points and Varan had six points and nine rebounds. Have to admire the Pelicans, facing the league's number one Sun, the fiery Booker, they are only 5 points behind in the half, what else can you ask for?