On October 31, Beijing time, the 2024-25 NBA regular season continued, and the Warriors beat the Pelicans 104-89 at home back-to-back, the Warriors ushered in 2 consecutive wins, and the Pelicans suffered 3 consecutive defeats.

Statistics

Pelicans: Ingram scored 14 points, Zion Williamson scored 12 points and 12 rebounds on 5-of-20 shooting, and Hawkins had 23 points

Warriors: Dream Green 14 points, 4 rebounds, 6 assists and 5 blocks, Hield 21 points, Jackson Davis 15 points and 9 rebounds, Podzemski 13 points, 9 rebounds and 8 assists, Kuminga 16 points

Background

The Warriors completed a 20-point comeback in the absence of Curry, Wiggins and D'Anthony Melton in their last game to beat the Pelicans 124-106. In the game, the Warriors hit 21 three-pointers, shooting 45.7%. At the same time, the Warriors forced the Pelicans to make 23 turnovers, and they used them to score a whopping 34 points, which is 29 points higher than the Pelicans. When talking about back-to-back games against the Pelicans, Payton Jr. also bluntly said that he should play confrontation as soon as possible, not to let the opponent enter the rhythm early, and not to let Zion easily kill the restricted area.

Back-to-back games against the same team are rare for most NBA teams, but that's not the case for the Pelicans, who experienced it in Portland last week. Zion says he's motivated to put himself in the Avengers' shoes, which is the beauty of the NBA. For Zion and Ingram, facing the Warriors again, they will be looking to reduce their turnover stats, with the pair having 10 turnovers in their last loss to the Warriors, with Zion having seven.

Game recap

Fighting the Pelicans back-to-back, Curry continued the truce. The Warriors, who were playing at home, took the lead, and Jackson Davis kicked off the game with two domineering dunks in a row. Waters III and Moody also teamed up for two three-pointers to give the Warriors a 14-8 run. The Pelicans came back from a timeout to close the deficit to one point with a three-pointer from Javonte Green and a jumper from Ingram. However, the Pelicans were unable to carry on that offensive streak, and in the final five minutes of the quarter, the Pelicans scored just three goals in the game, and the Warriors relied on a 14-7 offensive surge to take a 28-20 lead over the Pelicans at the end of the first quarter. Notably, the Pelicans shot just 28.6 percent from the field (8-of-28) in the first quarter.

In the second quarter, when the Warriors extended their lead to 12 points, the Pelicans immediately launched a counterattack, and Hawkins hit three three-pointers into the net to direct a 16-2 mini-surge to help the team take the score 36-34. Warriors coach Kerr immediately called a halt when he saw the situation. When the game restarted, Dream Green used a precise three-pointer to help the Warriors stabilize their position, but Hawkins returned the favor with the same color and caused Payton Jr. to foul and unfortunately miss the free throw. Chasing dreams to find rhythm is also unstoppable, one person hit 5 points in a row, and Podzemski also made contributions on the outside, and the Warriors overtook 45-39. Then Dream showed his defensive ability and sent 2 blocks in just 17 seconds. The Warriors relied on Hield's buzzer-beating three-pointers to take a 48-44 lead over the Pelicans at the end of the first half.

After a wave of 14-4 offense, the score was rewritten to 62-48. Ingram's jumper still couldn't arouse the fighting spirit of his teammates, on the other hand, the Warriors played as smoothly on the offensive end, chasing the dream of 2+1, Jackson Davis and Podzemski also made contributions one after another, and the Warriors instantly extended their advantage to 16 points. After the timeout, the Pelicans gradually picked up, with a wave of 10-4 counterattacks, chasing the score to 63-73. At the critical moment, Hield's three-pointer helped the Warriors stabilize their position, and Anderson also contributed to the free throw. At the end of the third quarter, the Warriors led the Pelicans 79-66.

In the final quarter, Kuminga hit a 2+1 on Hawkins, and Podzemski also sent the ball into the net with Hield's assistance, and the Warriors led 84-67. The Pelicans didn't give up, and Ingram and Alvarado scored back-to-back points to help the team stay in the game. At 7:23, Hield hit a decisive three-pointer against a defender, and then Kuminga completed a layup, and the Warriors extended their advantage to 20 points. Although the Pelicans then had a performance, the Warriors didn't give them a chance to turn the game around.

Both sides start

Pelicans: Brandon Ingram, Zion Williamson, Daniel Theis, Jordan Hawkins, Jos Alvarado

Warriors: Draymond Green, Tress Jackson Davis, Moses Moody, Lindy Waters III, Blandin Podzemski