Pelicans at Mavericks
The Dallas Mavericks will try to bounce back from a rocky road loss when they put a pair of home winning streaks on the line against the New Orleans Pelicans on Saturday. The Mavericks have won five straight at home and have claimed six in a row against the Pelicans at American Airlines Center.
However, Dallas has little time to recover from an ugly 106-82 loss at Miami on Friday that snapped a four-game winning streak. The Pelicans have split their last eight games following a 6-18 start but dropped their second in a row at home on Thursday, falling 95-89 to the Los Angeles Clippers. Anthony Davis was held to a season low-tying 14 points and his team was kept below 90 points for the third time in four games. Dallas and New Orleans split a home-and-home set earlier in the season, with the Pelicans winning the second meeting 120-105 despite losing Davis to a hip injury that kept him out of the next two games.
TV: 8:30 p.m. ET, FSN New Orleans, FSN Southwest (Dallas)
ABOUT THE PELICANS (10-22): New Orleans is 3-15 on the road, where it averages 97.1 points while shooting 43.4 percent, compared to 107.5 points on 46.2 percent at home. Forward Ryan Anderson has been one of the primary culprits in the drop-off, averaging more than four fewer points (19.2 to 15.1) away from home while seeing his shooting percentage drop from 49.2 to 40.6 and his 3-point accuracy from 43.1 to 33.8. Anderson averaged 23 points and 10 rebounds in the back-to-back games against Dallas earlier this season.
ABOUT THE MAVERICKS (19-14): J.J. Barea's magical ride came to an end at Miami, as the veteran guard was limited to six points while missing all five of his 3-point tries after averaging 22.3 points in the previous four games - all starts in place of Deron Williams. Barea may resume his customary bench role now that Williams has returned from a hamstring injury, providing nine points and five assists in 20 minutes against the Heat. Barea's difficult night from long range was part of a 7-of-31 effort for the Mavericks, who averaged 113.5 points during the winning streak.
BUZZER BEATERS
1. Mavericks SG Wesley Matthews is 12-of-18 from 3-point range over a three-game span.
2. Pelicans PG Norris Cole has scored in double figures in consecutive games for the first time this season.
3. The teams complete their four-game season series Wednesday in New Orleans.