National Basketball Association
L.A. Lakers 124, New Orleans 108
When: 3:30 PM ET, Sunday, April 14, 2024
Where: Smoothie King Center, New Orleans, Louisiana
Officials: #10 John Goble, #26 Pat Fraher, #13 Ashley Moyer-Gleich
Attendance: 18633

LeBron James had a triple-double, Anthony Davis had a double-double and the visiting Los Angeles Lakers dominated the New Orleans Pelicans 124-108 in the regular-season finale Sunday.

James finished with 28 points, 17 assists and 11 rebounds and Davis had 30 points and 11 rebounds as the Lakers (47-35) clinched the No. 8 seed and set up a rematch with the seventh-seeded Pelicans (49-33) in a play-in game Tuesday night in New Orleans.

Austin Reaves added 20 points, D'Angelo Russell scored 19 and Rui Hachimura had 11 for L.A.

CJ McCollum scored 25 points to lead New Orleans. Herbert Jones added 18, while Larry Nance Jr. and Brandon Ingram, returning from a 12-game absence due to a hyper-extended knee, scored 13 each.

Zion Williamson had 12, Trey Murphy III 11 and Jose Alvarado 10 for New Orleans, which saw its four-game winning streak end. The Pelicans fell from No. 6 in the West and into the play-in because Phoenix defeated Minnesota 125-106 and won the tie-breaker with the Pelicans for No. 6.

L.A. never trailed in the game, leading by as many as 23 points in the first half and outscoring New Orleans 68-42 in points in the paint for the game. The Lakers won the season series 3-1 as the visiting team prevailed for the first time.

Reaves made one 3-pointer and Russell added two to start L.A.'s third-quarter scoring and help the Lakers expand their lead to 85-57.

Davis scored eight of his 14 first-quarter points as the Lakers opened a 17-7 lead. Ingram scored the Pelicans' final nine points as they trimmed the lead to 30-24 at the end of the period.

Taurean Prince and James each made a pair of layups and L.A. increased the lead to 15 points early in the second quarter. New Orleans got within 12 before Reeves scored five points, James had a three-point play and an assist and the Lakers matched their biggest lead of the half, 60-37.

Nance scored seven points, making one of four 3-pointers in the final 3:39 of the half that helped the Pelicans creep within 70-53 at halftime.

--Field Level Media

Top Game Performances
 
L.A. Lakers   New Orleans
Anthony Davis 30 Scoring CJ McCollum 25
LeBron James 17 Assists Zion Williamson 8
Anthony Davis 11 Rebounds Zion Williamson 8
LeBron James 6 Free Throws Made Zion Williamson 4
LeBron James 5 Steals Herbert Jones 2
LeBron James 1 Blocks Trey Murphy III 1
Team Stats Summary
 
Team Points FG% 3PM-3PA FTM-FTA Assists Rebounds Blocks Steals Turnovers
L.A. Lakers 124 55.2 11-29 17-18 32 39 3 12 15
New Orleans 108 47.7 15-37 11-14 26 39 1 8 19
Upcoming Games
  • New Orleans will play their next game at home against L.A. Lakers. The Pelicans have a W/L % of .580 after a win and .625 after a loss.
  • L.A. Lakers will play their next game on the road against New Orleans. The Lakers have a W/L % of .522 after a win and .639 after a loss.