Recent Orleans Pelicans forward Brandon Ingram (14) moves the ball down court against Charlotte Hornets guard Nick Smith Jr. (8) within the second half of an NBA basketball game in Recent Orleans, Wednesday, Jan. 17, 2024. The Pelicans won 132-112. (AP Photo/Gerald Herbert)
NEW ORLEANS— Brandon Ingram put an emphatic, crowd-pleasing end to his recent shooting slump.
Ingram highlighted a 28-point performance with a career-best seven 3-pointers to go together with 10 rebounds and 10 assists, and the Recent Orleans Pelicans set a franchise record for 3s with 25 in a 132-112 victory over the Charlotte Hornets within the NBA on Wednesday night.
Ingram “was aggressive from the beginning,” Pelicans coach Willie Green said. “He was playing fast, twiddling with force, no hesitation on his part and it was a dominant effort across the board.”
It was the third profession triple-double for Ingram, who received a standing ovation as he checked out of the sport for good in the ultimate minutes. That scene got here one game after he missed a late 3-pointer for a tie at Dallas on Monday in a loss to the Mavericks, capping a two-game stint by which he made just seven of 25 shots and missed all five of his 3-point attempts.
“Just playing a bit of bit freer, taking what the defense gave me,” Ingram said. “I don’t miss quite a lot of shots. So, after I begin to miss shots, I’m thrown off a bit of bit. But in addition, I got to have a brief memory, proceed to maintain shooting. That’s what I attempted to do tonight.”
Brandon Ingram tallied a TRIPLE-DOUBLE within the Pelicans’ win against the Hornets!
28 PTS | 10 REB | 10 AST | 7 3PM pic.twitter.com/5UbWxyPsIl
— NBA (@NBA) January 18, 2024
CJ McCollum scored 22 points and hit 4 times from deep. Rookie guard Jordan Hawkins made six 3s and finished with 21 points for Recent Orleans, while Trey Murphy III hit five 3s and scored 18.
Zion Williamson scored 13 points and likewise kicked the ball out for nine assists, and Recent Orleans finished with 32 assists on 44 field goals.
“It’s hard for teams to match up with that shooting and spacing, especially if you put the ball in Z’s hands or BI’s hands and you’ve got shooting around those guys,” Green said. “We all know with a purpose to rating against one of the best teams and be a highly efficient offense, we now have to be willing to take catch-and-shoot 3s, open 3s.”
Hawkins and Murphy give the Pelicans a pair of premier perimeter shooters who could help Recent Orleans just do that.
“It’s really fun on the market,” Hawkins said of twiddling with Murphy on the alternative wing. “I don’t think I’ve played with a man who can shoot the ball like that — arguably shoot the ball higher than me, like, ever, in my life.”
LaMelo Ball had 29 points and Terry Rozier added 25 for Charlotte, which trailed many of the game and by 24 within the second half.
Nick Richards added 10 points and 12 rebounds for the struggling Hornets, who’ve lost six straight and 17 of 18.
All that losing, Richards said, “is something we don’t wish to take into consideration, because we would like to learn from this game — and we’ve got to recover from this game and every loss. We just need to keep going.”
The Pelicans hit their first six 3s and nine of their first 11, constructing a 17-point lead in the primary half. Recent Orleans had 16 assists on 16 baskets in the primary quarter — a franchise first.
Charlotte briefly rallied to drag to 66-61 at halftime before Recent Orleans pulled away again within the third quarter, when Ingram scored 14 points.
Hawkins credited Ingram for being “mentally tough,” adding: “With the ability to come out here and drop a triple-double, that shows how tough he’s.”
NEXT SCHEDULE
Hornets: Host San Antonio on Friday.
Pelicans: Host Phoenix on Friday.
