Pelicans at Rockets
The New Orleans Pelicans are vying for the final playoff spot in the
Western Conference and hope to move closer to landing it when they visit
the Houston Rockets on Sunday. The Pelicans are tied for eighth place
in the West with the Oklahoma City Thunder and hold an advantage by
owning the tiebreaker edge.
Houston is in its own battle as one of four teams in the West trying to finish in the second spot. The Rockets tumbled out of second place in the West by losing back-to-back games against the San Antonio Spurs and will try to get back there over the final three games – against the Pelicans, Charlotte Hornets and Utah Jazz. Leading MVP candidate James Harden had a rare off-night with 16 points on 5-of-19 shooting in Friday's 104-103 setback. New Orleans defeated the Phoenix Suns 90-75 on Friday and has won six of its last eight games, and its final two games are against Minnesota and San Antonio.
TV: 7 p.m. ET, FSN New Orleans, ROOT (Houston)
12.00
ABOUT THE PELICANS (43-36): All-Star power forward Anthony Davis is expected to play against the Rockets despite missing part of Friday’s game due to taking an elbow in the throat. Davis participated in practice on Saturday – a great sign considering he has been carrying New Orleans during its playoff charge. Davis has 40 double-doubles and is averaging 24.2 points, 10.2 rebounds and 2.9 blocked shots while establishing himself as one of the league’s top big men.
ABOUT THE ROCKETS (53-26): Forward Trevor Ariza is in a torrid shooting stretch after scoring 19 points in each of the losses to San Antonio. Ariza went 14-of-20 from the field – including 9-of-11 from 3-point range – and has scored in double digits in nine consecutive contests. Ariza is averaging 17.2 points during the stretch and has knocked down 31 3-pointers to be a quality complimentary scorer alongside Harden.
BUZZER BEATERS 1. New Orleans lost six straight visits to Houston before recording a 99-90 victory on Dec. 18.
2. Pelicans PG Jrue Holiday (leg) returned after a 41-game absence to contribute two points and five assists against the Suns.
3. Rockets F Josh Smith attempted 26 free throws – making only 12 – in Friday’s loss to the Spurs.