On April 30, Beijing time, the NBA playoffs continued, in the previously concluded game, on the Eastern side, the Celtics got the match point 3-1, the Cavaliers and the Magic tied 2-2, the Pacers led the Bucks 3-1 to get the match point, and the Knicks led the 76ers 3-1 to get the match point. On the western side, the Clippers and Mavericks tied 2-2, the Timberwolves swept the Suns 4-0 to advance early, and the Nuggets led the Lakers 3-1, and it was only a matter of time before they advanced. As the first in the West in the regular season, the Thunder led the Pelicans 3-0 before, from a 2-point narrow victory in the first game, to a 22-point victory + 21-point victory in the next two games. According to the probability prediction given by the American media "BR", the probability of the Thunder promotion is 97.2%, and there is no suspense.
The Pelicans, who took the last train of the playoffs, are not vulnerable, mainly because Zion suffered a left hamstring injury, although it is not as serious as last year, but the timing of his comeback will be the second round at the earliest, and it is precisely that their first round is the Thunder with perfect offense and defense. During the regular season, the Thunder's biggest shortcoming was rebounding and rim protection, but in the playoffs, this improvement was obvious, and the shooting percentage was first in the league and the three-point shooting percentage was second in the league! In the first three games of the playoffs, Ingram was only 17 of 41!22 In the playoffs, Ingram averaged 27 points and 6 assists per game, and this season he averaged 16 points and 2.3 assists per game. In addition, the Pelicans scored less than 93 points in three consecutive games, setting the worst record for a playoff team in the NBA in the last eight years.
Thunder starters: Alexander + Keady + Dort + Jewe + Holmgren, Pelicans starters: McCollum + Herbert Jones + Ingram + Murphy + Valanciunas. At the beginning of the game, Dort opened the three-point touch, Varland chiseled the basket, McCollum and Keady hit three-pointers, Jay Wei ate cakes and dunked, and Alexander easily trained McCollum. When the Thunder opened up the difference slightly, the Pelicans began to respond off the bench, Marshall hit a three-pointer after coming on the court, Nance pushed with one arm, and at the end of the quarter, it was Marshall's European step layup, and the two teams tied at 21 in the first quarter, and the Pelicans bench felt hot. Back in the second quarter, Holmgren and Jay used singles to bite the score, Varan made a kill, McCollum made a pull-up jumper, and when Wiggins blossomed inside and outside in the middle of the period, Varan and Nance responded strongly.
In the second half, Marshall and Nance took turns to make fouls, and Jay hit a tough one-on-one shot, and Murphy immediately responded with a three-pointer. At the end of the quarter, Dort countered and dunked, and at halftime, the Thunder led the Pelicans 44-43. In the entire first half, only Jay Wei scored in double figures, with 13 points, Alexander had 9 points and 5 rebounds, the Pelicans scored the most with Wallan 8 points and 7 rebounds, and Ingram was completely sleepwalking. At the beginning of the second half, Holmgren took the lead in hitting a three-pointer, and after Wallan and Herbert Jones scored seven points in a row to overtake, Alexander trained Nance and Keady scored a rebound in the air, and McCollum blossomed inside and outside to hold a slight lead. At the end of the quarter, Dort and Jones hit a three-pointer, Alexander and Marshall sniped outside, Marshall hit another three-pointer to regain the lead, and the third quarter was over, and the Thunder 70-71 Pelicans.
In the fourth quarter of the decisive battle, Varan and Alvarado continued to widen the difference, Keady hit two three-pointers + Holmgren threw a basket to tie the game! Ingram made another mistake, Jawell used free throws and three-pointers to continue to widen the difference!Wallan's foul + breakthrough throwing a cup of money, he couldn't save the Pelicans, Alexander also gave up the opportunity to counterattack and make a layup, and finally the Thunder defeated the Pelicans 97-89, with a big score of 4-0, and advanced to the semifinals of the Western Division!
Thunder statistics, Alexander 24 points, 10 rebounds and 2 assists, Jay 24 points, 8 rebounds and 4 assists, Holmgren 14 points, 9 rebounds and 5 assists, Keady 14 points and 3 rebounds, Dort 11 points, 8 rebounds and 3 assists, Pelicans statistics, Ingram got 8 points, 4 rebounds and 6 assists on 2-of-14 shooting, Valanciunas 19 points and 13 rebounds, McCollum 20 points and 6 rebounds, Herbert Jones 11 points, 4 rebounds and 4 assists, Marshall 16 points and 3 rebounds.
Zion really wanted to experience the playoffs for the first time in his career, and it can only be said that the Pelicans were not lucky enough. Without Zion, the Pelicans' offense can be completely limited by one-on-one, including Ingram, with no touch at all, and the team's most threatening offense is still Wallan's hard chiseled basket, but it is also accompanied by a lot of turnovers. There's no shame in the Pelicans being out, it's a true reflection of their level. The Thunder also followed the Timberwolves to become the second team to advance to the semifinals this season, their opponents will be the winner of the Mavericks and Clippers, the Thunder have at least 1 week of rest, which is not necessarily a good thing, the young team is full of energy, and excessive rest is easy to break the rhythm.