Cousins posts historic triple-double
24 January, 2018
DeMarcus Cousins considered it the most impressive statistical game of his career and only half-jokingly asserted that he was most proud of the stamina he needed to log a career high of more than 51 minutes on the court.
Cousins had 44 points, 24 rebounds and 10 assists, Anthony Davis scored 34, and the All-Star pair led a 17-point New Orleans comeback in the final five minutes of regulation before the Pelicans pulled out a 132-128 victory over the Chicago Bulls in double overtime Monday night.
“My strength coach had the nerve to ask me, do I want to lift after this game? I almost lost it. If I had some energy, we would have fought,” Cousins said. “I’m just glad it’s over. Seriously. I think [the Bulls] feel the same way, too.”
In between several moments of brilliance in the second overtime, Cousins’ body language suggested he could barely stand. His feet hardly left the floor on a 3-pointer that rolled around the rim and in. He also managed to hit a turnaround jumper and calmly made two free throws to ice the game with eight seconds left.
Davis, who fouled out in the first overtime, called Cousins’ performance “legendary,” adding that his fellow big man — more than anyone — earned the day off from practice the Pelicans were given on Tuesday.
When the game was finally over, an excited Davis jumped on Cousins and wrapped his arms around his neck.
“He played his heart out,” Davis said.
Cousins became the first NBA player since Hall of Famer Kareem Abdul-Jabbar in 1972 to have as many as 40 points, 20 rebounds and 10 assists in a game, according to the Elias Sports Bureau. Few others have done it.
Cousins’ assists included alley-oop lobs to Davis and a couple of long passes to him for breakaway baskets.
“You dream about moments like that as a kid — a game coming down to the line and just making big plays down the stretch,” Cousins said. “I think we just willed our way through this game.”
And yet Cousins’ heroics nearly never happened. Even after the Pelicans’ stunning 23-4 run in the last five minutes of regulation gave them a 114-112 lead on Davis’ free throws with 3.2 seconds left, Chicago’s Justin Holiday was fouled by Darius Miller attempting a 3-pointer in the final second of the period.