5:10 pm
March 26

Spurs @ Pelicans

Who will WIN this matchup?

San Antonio Spurs (29-44)

@ New Orleans Pelicans (31-42)

 

Current odds:

San Antonio Spurs: (+210)

New Orleans Pelicans: (-256)

 

• The line for this game is Pelicans by 6.5 points.

• The San Antonio Spurs and the New Orleans Pelicans are engaged in a tight battle to qualify for the play-in tournament in the Western Conference as they meet Saturday in New Orleans. The Pelicans (31-42) entered Friday tied with the Los Angeles Lakers for ninth place, two games ahead of the 11th-place Spurs (29-44). The teams that finish in the 7-10 spots in each conference qualify for the play-in.

• This clash comes just eight days after the Pelicans led by as many as 40 points in San Antonio while routing the Spurs 124-91. The Spurs still lead the season series 2-1.

• The Pelicans are coming off a 126-109 home victory against Chicago on Thursday. They clamped down on the defensive end after allowing 39 first-quarter points and eventually pulled away by outscoring the Bulls 40-24 in the fourth quarter.

• Chicago made six of nine 3-pointers in the first quarter, but after that just eight of 25, including just four of 16 in the second half.

• The Spurs have rebounded well since the March 18 loss to the Pelicans. They began their current four-game road trip with victories at Golden State (110-108 on Sunday) and Portland (133-96 on Wednesday). Both opponents were shorthanded as the Warriors played without Steph Curry and the Trail Blazers played without Damian Lillard and Jusuf Nurkic.

• After the Spurs had their lowest-scoring quarter of the season in falling behind New Orleans 35-10 in the first period, against Portland posted their highest-scoring first half of the season, taking an 81-53 lead against the Blazers. The Spurs made 19 3-pointers, tying their season high, which included a club-record 13 in the first half.

• Lonnie Walker IV, averaging 12.2 points off the bench, hasn’t played since sustaining back spasms against the Pelicans last week.

• Brandon Ingram, averaging 22.8 points for New Orleans, has missed nine consecutive games because of a strained hamstring, though he practiced on a limited basis Friday.

5/10
Confidence
StreakSmarter Pick
New Orleans Pelicans
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