LEBRON James and Luka Doncic each delivered 30-point performances to lead the Los Angeles Lakers to a 111–103 victory over the New Orleans Pelicans on Tuesday night (Wednesday, Jan. 7, 2026, PH time), the Associated Press (AP) reported.
The win marks the Lakers’ fourth victory in their last five outings, while the reeling Pelicans suffered their eighth consecutive loss.
The Lakers turned the tide in the final period with a decisive 18–4 run. The surge was fueled by two deep three-pointers from James, a long-range connection from Dalton Knecht, and a pair of interior buckets from Deandre Ayton.
The blitz turned a deficit into a 97–90 lead, and New Orleans was unable to pull within more than four points for the remainder of the contest.
Doncic was instrumental in closing the door, finishing with 10 assists to go along with his 30 points. He punctuated his performance with two off-balance, “bail-out” triples as the shot clock expired late in the game.
Ayton provided a strong presence in the paint, tallying 18 points and 11 rebounds.
The Pelicans led by as many as nine points late in the third quarter, largely thanks to a spectacular effort from Trey Murphy, who scored a career-high 41 points. Murphy was particularly dominant in the third quarter, where he accounted for 20 of the team’s points.
Zion Williamson added 15 points for New Orleans, while rookie Derik Queen contributed 10 points and 13 rebounds.
Herb Jones Herb Jones struggled in his return from a seven-game absence due to a right ankle injury, missing eight of his nine shot attempts.
Rookie Derik Queen: Provided a bright spot with a double-double of 10 points and 13 rebounds.
The Pelicans’ shooting woes from beyond the arc were a major factor in the loss, as they missed 30 of their 40 three-point attempts (25%). In contrast, the Lakers shot a solid 50.6 percent from the field.
Elsewhere, the Washington Wizards defeated the Orlando Magic 120-112, Cleveland earned a 120-116 road win at Indiana, Minnesota Timberwolves blew out Miami Heat 122-94, Memphis Grizzlies edged San Antonio Spurs 106-105, and Dallas took a 100-98 victory over Sacramento. / LBG