Warriors pull away in final quarter to down Pelicans, 108-99

For much of the game Friday night in San Francisco, the New Orleans Pelicans played toe-to-toe, step-for-step with defending NBA champion Golden State.

Then, the Warriors stepped it up, stepped on the toes of the Pelicans and pulled away in the final minutes for a 108-99 victory.

The Pelicans led 93-92 with under four minutes to play.

From that point on, it was all Golden State as the Warriors outscored the Pelicans 16-6 to secure the victory.

With the game on the line, New Orleans missed four of its last five field goal attempts and two of four free throw attempts and committed a turnover.

It was 98-96 Golden State when Jonathan Kuminga got free and slammed one home with 2:22 to play to make it a two-possession game.

That started a 6-0 run as the Warriors put the game away.

After scoring 40 points in a win at Portland, Brandon Ingram was stifled most of the night, scoring just 17 points on 6 of 16 shooting.

Being short-handed, the Pelicans need Ingram to be a star night in and night out to have a chance to win. It did not happen Friday night as the Warriors blitzed Ingram with frequent double-teams and the length and athleticism of Kuminga clearly impacted Ingram.

CJ McCollum led New Orleans with 25 points while Trey Murphy added 15 points and Naji Marshall had 14 off the bench.

Playing without Jonas Valanciunas, Larry Nance Jr. and, of course, Zion Williamson, New Orleans got hammered 43-29 on the boards, a significant factor in the game.

The Warriors shot 51 percent from the field and made 18 of 20 free throws in winning their fifth straight home game. Klay Thompson led Golden State with 27 points.

New Orleans (31-33) is tied with Utah for the tenth and final play-in spot in the Western Conference. The Pelicans will conclude the road trip Monday night at red hot Sacramento. Like the Warriors, the Kings have won five straight games.