NEW ORLEANS -- What started as a promising weekend for the New Orleans Pelicans slowly was turning into a nightmare.
In a pivotal back-to-back set against the two teams they're battling in the Western Conference play-in race, the Pelicans lost by four points to the San Antonio Spurs on Saturday, then found themselves down 23 to the Los Angeles Lakers on Sunday night.
But after a 41-point third quarter, the Pelicans pushed through for a 116-108 victory, sliding into ninth place in the West with a half-game lead on the Lakers and a 1½-game lead on the Spurs.