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Davis, Rondo lead Pelicans to Game 3 blowout of Warriors

Stacy Revere / Getty Images Sport / Getty

Anthony Davis finally won a playoff game against the Golden State Warriors.

Davis was 0-6 lifetime against the Warriors in the postseason before Friday night, but went for 33 points, 18 rebounds, three assists, and four steals to lead his New Orleans Pelicans to a 119-100 win that sliced Golden State's lead in the second-round series to 2-1.

Davis got a huge boost from the rest of the Pelicans' eight-man rotation (which collectively shot 50 percent from the field and 42.5 percent from 3-point range) - especially Rajon Rondo, who put up just four points on 2-of-11 shooting but controlled virtually every other aspect of the game, snaring 10 rebounds and dishing out a playoff career-high 21 assists.

Rondo is the first player to drop 20 or more dimes in a playoff game since ... Rondo, who last did so in 2011 as a member of the Boston Celtics.

His and Davis' performances were intertwined, as Davis was on the receiving end of a third of those assists. Rondo orchestrated the pick-and-roll with patience and creativity, using subtle fakes and hesitation dribbles to look off defenders before either hitting Davis on the roll or slinging the ball to a shooter or cutter left open by a help defender. Rondo also threw a handful of pristine bounce-pass entry feeds that helped Davis and others get layups or rhythm turnaround jumpers.

Rondo's mastery allowed Davis to play without the ball more than he did in Games 1 and 2, and he absolutely carved the Warriors up as a dive man, cutter, and off-the-catch attacker. The biggest difference was the decisiveness with which Davis continually made the next play - whether it was a shot, a drive, a pass, a cut, or a screen - and kept the Pelicans' offense flowing all night. He also had a couple monster put-back dunks for good measure.

Rondo and Davis were buttressed by Nikola Mirotic, who put up 16 points and 13 rebounds and got five of his six buckets off Rondo assists; Jrue Holiday, who dropped 21 points and five assists while working Steph Curry at both ends; and Ian Clark, who came off the bench to hang 18 points on 11 shooting possessions against his former team.

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