On December 22, Beijing time, the Pelicans played away against the Cavaliers, of which the Cavaliers were the second game of a back-to-back, the Pelicans lacked the core Zion, and the Cavaliers lacked Mitchell, Garland, and Mobley Jr. The Pelicans, led by Ingram and Murphy, easily crushed the Cavaliers, gradually expanded their 20+ advantage in the second half, and finally the Pelicans ended the Cavaliers' three-game winning streak 123-104. The Pelicans scored five double-doubles, Murphy scored 28 points on six three-pointers, Ingram had 17 points, seven rebounds and six assists, the Cavaliers also scored five double-doubles, and Wade scored a team-high 20 points.
There are a number of players on both sides who are unavailable for this game, with the Pelicans lacking core Zion, plus Nance Jr., Ryan and Zeller absent. The Cavaliers are also a number of core injuries, with Mitchell and Garland both absent in the backcourt, as well as Mobley Jr., the core of the interior, plus Jerome and Rubio absent.
In such a confrontation between the two remnant teams, the Cavaliers have seriously declined their overall combat effectiveness after the lack of a number of cores. Led by Ingram and Murphy, the Pelicans hit 30+ consecutive Cavaliers in the first two quarters of the game, including a 36-28 net win of 8 points in the first quarter and a 6-point win of 30-24 in the second quarter, and the Pelicans had a 14-point lead over the Cavaliers at 66-52 at the end of the first half.
Throughout the first two quarters of the game, the Pelicans were 10 of 20 from the outside three-pointers, the Cavaliers were 9 of 21 from three-point range, the Pelicans scored two double-doubles, Murphy scored 19 points on 7 of 10, including 4 of 7 from the outside, Ingram scored 13 points, 6 rebounds and 4 assists on 5 of 7, and McCollum scored 7 points. On the other hand, the Cavaliers only had one player score in double figures, and Strus scored 11 points on 3-of-8 shooting.
The Pelicans continued to suppress the Cavaliers in the second half, and they once took a 24-point lead, and the Cavaliers fought back slightly to chase the points, and at the end of the third quarter, the Pelicans extended an 18-point lead over the Cavaliers 94-76. In the first three quarters, the Pelicans scored three double-doubles, Murphy scored 25 points on five three-pointers, Ingram had 17 points, seven rebounds and six assists, and McCollum scored 13 points. The Cavaliers had four players score in double figures, but no player scored 15 points, Okoro had 14 points, Wade and Allen each had 12 points, and Strus had 13 points.
At the beginning of the final quarter, the Cavaliers chased a difference of 16 points, but then the Pelicans opened a 20+ gap again, and the game also lost the suspense of victory in advance, and the Pelicans easily defeated the Cavaliers to win 3 consecutive victories, and the record improved to 17-12 to continue to impact the top six in the West.
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