BBNBA: Play-In Tournament Tests Anthony Davis and Lakers

The NBA season is rolling right into postseason play.

In order to figure out which teams will have the chance to compete for a championship in June, the Play-In tournament happens this week. To get things moving on Tuesday night, the 8-seeded Los Angeles Lakers faced the 7-seeded New Orleans Pelicans with the winner locking up the 7-seed in the Playoffs. Immediately after, the 9-seeded Sacramento Kings hosted the 10-seeded Golden State Warriors in a win-or-go-home scenario.

How did it all play out? Let’s dive in and find out.

Down to the Wire in NOLA

Former Kentucky Wildcat Anthony Davis had a solid night for the Lakers in Los Angeles’ 110-106 barn-burner victory. Although things got off to a slow start for the star-studded team in the first quarter as they were outscored 34-26, Los Angeles was rolling in the second quarter. By the end of the game, Davis scored 20, pulled down 15 boards, and blocked three shots, but only six of those points came in the first half.

Davis had a breakout performance in the fourth quarter. With 3.1 seconds left on the clock, the Lakers held a 108-106 lead. Two of the 10 points scored in the fourth by Davis came with 2.1 seconds to go after he was sent to the line. The big man was clutch in crunch time and helped secure the four-point win for the Lakers.

Jarred Vanderbilt did not play for the Lakers as he continues to recover from a foot injury. Vando has not played since Feb. 1.

Los Angeles will go on to face the No. 2 seeded Denver Nuggets in the Western Conference Playoffs. The first game between the two will be Saturday, April 20, at 8:30 pm EST on ABC.

Fox Swipes the Win, Kings Stay Alive

The second Western Conference play-in game on Tuesday night was not as exciting as the first. It was more of a runaway game for the Sacramento Kings as they took on the Warriors in Golden State.

The Kings outscored the Warriors in every quarter other than the second. De’Aaron Fox, the former star Kentucky guard, played a large part in the dominance that Sacramento had. Fox dropped 24 points in the Kings’ 118-94 win over the Warriors.

Eight of those 24 points came in the first quarter which led to his team outscoring Golden State 31-22 in the first quarter. The Warriors were able to find a spark in the second quarter and cut it to a 54-50 game heading into the half. Fox only had two points in the second.

Things ramped up in the second half as the Kings outscored Golden State 64-44. Fox was not the only former Wildcat to contribute to Sacramento’s victory though. Trey Lyles scored seven points and had five rebounds in the game. Malik Monk remains out with a sprained MCL he suffered in late March.

With the win on Tuesday night, the Kings knocked out Golden State and will move on to play the Pelicans on Friday, April 19, at 9:30 pm EST on TNT/truTV. The winner of that game will secure the No. 8 seed in the playoffs and will face the top-seeded Oklahoma City Thunder in the opening round this weekend.

4/16/24 BBNBA Statistics:

Player	Score	PTS	FG (3PT)	REB	AST	STL	BLK	TO	+/-	MIN
De’Aaron Fox (SAC)	118-94 W vs. GSW	24	11-25 (2-8)	4	6	2	0	1	20	39
Anthony Davis (LAL)	110-106 W @ NO	20	6-16 (0-0)	15	0	1	3	3	-5	40
Trey Lyles (SAC)	118-94 W vs. GSW	7	2-6 (1-3)	5	2	1	0	0	3	19
Malik Monk (SAC)	118-94 W vs. GSW	DNP-MCL	—	—	—	—	—	—	—	—
Jarred Vanderbilt (LAL)	110-106 W @ NO	DNP-FOOT	—	—	—	—	—	—	—	—