NEW ORLEANS – LeBron James came 36 points away from breaking the NBA career record in the Los Angeles Lakers’ 131-126 loss to New Orleans on Saturday night, which ended the Pelicans’ 10-game losing streak.
James had 27 points to go with nine rebounds and six assists as he continued to close on Kareem Abdul-Jabbar’s record 38,387 points.
Brandon Ingram scored 35 points for the Pelicans.
CJ McCollum had 23 points, highlighted by a late 3, to help New Orleans finish the Finals 3-14 in a 9-5 run that kept the Lakers at bay.
Anthony Davis had 34 points and 14 rebounds for the Lakers. They led by 12 when James’ finger roll made it 84-72 in the third quarter.
The Pelicans cut away and finished the period with five quick points on McCollum’s transition floater and Jose Alvarado’s 3 after catching a deflected inbound pass.
That sequence reduced the Lakers’ lead to 106-103, and New Orleans took the lead when Trey Murphy hit two back-to-back 3s, the second from 27 feet, to make it 114-108.
The game stayed tight after that, but the Pelicans didn’t let Los Angeles regain the lead.
Murphy finished with 21 points and Alvarado had 18.
Jonas Valanciunas had 18 points and 14 rebounds for New Orleans but left the team late in the third quarter with a right knee injury and did not return.
Davis scored 18 of his points in the first half as the Lakers shot 55.1%, including 6 of 15 from deep, and built a double-digit lead.
The Pelicans briefly closed 61-56 when Ingram, who had 16 points in the first half, hit a floating floater off the glass while being fouled by Troy Brown Jr.
The Lakers then ended the second quarter on an 11-5 run. James and Westbrook each hit layups during the stint. Davis added a turnaround hook and Schroders 3 went down after a high rebound off the back rim in the final seconds, giving Los Angeles a 72-61 lead at the break.
TIP INS
Lakers: Went 2-3 during their five-game road trip that ended in New Orleans and hit the road 12-16 overall. … Westbrook played after being ruled questionable with an illness earlier in the day. … Davis was playing for his third straight game and fifth in six games since missing 20 games with a right foot injury. He reached 20 points for the 26th time in 30 games played and 30 points for the 11th time this season.
Pelicans: Larry Nance Jr. had 10 points and nine rebounds. … have given up at least 70 points in the first half for two consecutive years. … After McCollum made the Pelicans’ first 3-point attempt of the game, New Orleans missed 11 straight from the deep before Nance hit one in the last half minute of the first half. … shot 52% (52 out of 100) for the game and finished at 9 out of 30 from deep.
WELCOME
Fans cheered James throughout the performance and often cheered when he scored, especially after his end-to-end transition dunk in the third quarter. In the fourth, as James tried to save a ball from going wide and fell over the first few rows of spectators, the fans patted him on the back in support as he draped himself over them and helped him up.
NEXT
Lakers: host Oklahoma City on Tuesday night.
Pelicans: host Sacramento on Sunday night.
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