Neither the New Orleans Pelicans nor the Milwaukee Bucks have much time to fret about a disappointing loss.
The Pelicans overcame a 20-point, third-quarter deficit to take a five-point, fourth-quarter lead, then faded down the stretch of a 119-112 home loss to the Oklahoma City Thunder on Tuesday.
On the same night, the Bucks squandered a 19-point, fourth-quarter lead and lost 128-124 to the visiting Los Angeles Lakers in double overtime even though LeBron James didn’t play.
The Pelicans and Bucks will both look to bounce back on Thursday night when they meet in New Orleans.
Zion Williamson led the Pelicans (44-28) with 29 points and 10 assists on Tuesday, but neither he nor any of his teammates could score a single point after New Orleans took a 112-107 lead with 3:11 remaining. The Pelicans went 0-for-5 from the field down the stretch with a turnover.
Pelicans guard Jose Alvarado called the loss “a great learning experience,” and Giannis Antetokounmpo had a similar description of the Bucks’ loss to the Lakers.
Damian Lillard scored 27 points, and his jumper gave Milwaukee (46-26) a 94-75 lead with 8:25 left in the fourth quarter before Los Angeles finished regulation with a 26-7 run to force overtime.
In a scheduling quirk, this is the second time this season that the Pelicans have played the Bucks in between games against the Thunder and the Celtics. The first trio of games didn’t go well. New Orleans lost at home to Oklahoma City, 107-83, on Jan. 26, was routed 141-117 by host Milwaukee the next night and lost at Boston, 118-112, two nights after that.
The Bucks led New Orleans by as many as 34 points in their final game under interim coach Joe Prunty before Doc Rivers became the full-time replacement for the fired Adrian Griffin.
