Pelicans take a big lead in the third quarter but rally past Clippers to make it to the fourth round.

For the New Orleans PelicansAll seemed lost Friday night in Los Angeles’ third quarter.

The team that began the season 1-12, was 14-32 at the lowest point and had fallen to No. 9 seed in Western Conference play-in tournament.

In the first quarter, things were looking good for the Pelicans as they took a 16 point lead. The lead quickly vanished. They watched as the LA ClippersPlaying without star Paul GeorgeCOVID-19 quickly built a 13 point lead, and Crypto.com Arena was getting ready for the first round of playoff series.

Willie Green, Pelicans coach, settled his team and leant on his stars and a few rookies. He then watched as his Pelicans won the Clippers’ shock with a 105-101 victory.

Jonas ValanciunasThe Clippers tried to foul him with 12.6 seconds remaining to complete the deal. To celebrate the victory, the Clippers missed two 3-pointers.

New Orleans is the No. 8 seed and will now take on the top-seeded Phoenix SunsIn a series that starts Sunday.

The Pelicans became the fourth NBA team to begin a season with a 1-12 record or worse and make it to the playoffs. Cleveland Cavaliers(1-12) and 1967-68 Chicago Bulls (1-12), according to ESPN Stats & Information research.

With less than one minute remaining in the second quarter, the Pelicans had a 56-41 advantage. With 4:01 remaining in the third quarter, the Clippers responded with a 34-6 run. They took a 75-62 advantage.

Los Angeles held a 10-point advantage into the last quarter. However, the Pelicans fought back. New Orleans got up when the Clippers scored three of their first four points in the fourth. The game was tied at 88 by a 14-1 run. Both teams traded buckets for a tie at 94. New Orleans scored seven consecutive wins at that point — a Larry Nance Jr. putback dunk, a CJ McCollumA mid-range jumper, and a 3-pointer Trey MurphyTake control.

New Orleans was outscored 38-18 in the third quarter. It shot 6-of-22 from field, 1-of-7 deep, and 5-of-12 from free-throw. McCollum, Herb Jones Brandon IngramAll were minus-20 in this frame.

Ty Lue, Clippers coach went small in second half subbing Robert CovingtonFor Ivica ZubacIt paid immediate dividends. Green tried different combinations to give his team a boost. He even turned to Tony SnellThe Pelicans had not seen him play meaningful minutes in over a month.

Murphy, his coach, was able to reward him for his faith.