The Pelicans defeated the Sacramento Kings 105-98 in the last game of the NBA play-in tournament on Friday, although they had lost their most recognizable player in their previous game due to a hamstring injury. They will now face the Oklahoma City Thunder, the No. 8 seed in the West, in the first round.
This defeat ended the Kings' season, which continued until Friday with a comforting win over the Golden State Warriors on Tuesday. The team still hasn't won a playoff series since 2004.
Brandon Ingram had an impressive night with 20 points, 6 rebounds and 6 assists for the Pelicans, who won the regular season 49-33. Sacramento took an early advantage, but the Pelicans, with the enthusiastic Smoothie King Center crowd behind them, took control late in the second quarter and led by at least five points for the entire second half.
A 10-0 run early in the fourth quarter nearly put the game out of reach, but the Kings' late run brought the lead back to single digits.
Now the Pelicans have to worry about the Thunder and Williamson is unlikely to help. He has been diagnosed with a strained hamstring and will be re-evaluated more than a week in the future, and the Pelicans will have to figure out Shai Gilgeous-Alexander and his company without him. The Pelicans are 1-2 against the Thunder in the regular season.
Game 1 will be played on Sunday at 8:30 p.m. in Oklahoma City (TNT).
