The Lakers are locked into the West’s No.8 seed heading into the Play-In Tournament after downing the Pelicans 124-108 in New Orleans.
As a result, the Pelicans will host the Lakers again in 48 hours with the winner punching their ticket to a first-round matchup versus the defending champion Nuggets.
The loser will meet the winner of the Kings-Warriors Play-In showdown in Sacramento for a shot at a first-round matchup against the No.1 seeded Thunder.
The Lakers will be sweating the health of star bigman Anthony Davis who failed to finish the game due to back and hip spasms.
Davis had 30 points and 11 rebounds on 13-of-17 shooting before exiting the game with 5:22 to play in the final frame.
LeBron James led the way for the Lakers putting up 28 points, 11 rebounds, 17 assists and five steals on 11-of-20 from the field.
He joins Magic Johnson as the only other Laker to put up those marks in a single game.
Austin Reaves (20 pts, 8/12 FG) enjoyed a strong night whilst D’Angelo Russell (19 pts, 5/10 3P) and Rui Hachimura (11 pts, 7 reb) also found ways to contribute.
The Lakers led for the entirety of the game with their lead growing to as high as 32 in the third quarter.
New Orleans ate into the deficit at different stages, but it proved in vain with the Lakers holding on to win the season series 3-1.
The Lakers dominated the paint battle 68-42 whilst scoring 27 points off 19 Pelican turnovers.
C.J. McCollum (25 pts, 7 ast) led the way for New Orleans along with Herb Jones (18 pts, 4/7 3P).
Zion Williamson (12 pts, 4/13 FG) had a subpar outing whilst Brandon Ingram (13 pts in 23 mins) showed strong signs in his first game since picking up a knee issue over three weeks ago.
