Pelicans at Wizards
The Washington Wizards will attempt to record their 13th victory in 14 meetings when they host the New Orleans Pelicans on Saturday. Washington swept last season's two-game series and owns a five-game winning streak against New Orleans entering the first of two matchups in a five-day stretch.
The Pelicans are a meager 2-8 on the road after blowing a nine-point, fourth-quarter advantage against the lowly New York Knicks on Friday and eventually succumbing 114-109. "Basketball is basketball," disappointed New Orleans coach Alvin Gentry told reporters after New York's game-ending 22-8 surge. "If you can play at home, you can play on the road. We just need to do a better job of executing and finishing games." Washington has been unable to put it together this season and gave up 70 first-half points in Friday's 125-107 loss at Toronto. "We missed a lot of open (shots) and missed a lot of easy ones that probably should have went down," Wizards guard Bradley Beal told reporters. "It just comes back to defending better. When that shot's not working, we've got to get back to guarding, and we didn't do that."
TV: 8 p.m. ET, FS New Orleans, NBCS Washington
ABOUT THE PELICANS (10-9): Anthony Davis recorded 33 points and 12 rebounds against the Knicks but missed parts of the second half after injuring his quadriceps. New Orleans declared Davis as day-to-day after a contest in which it wilted badly, and it won't be a surprise if he is held out of the second contest of back-to-back games. "We won't use (Davis' absence) as an excuse," Gentry said of the fourth-quarter issues. "We're going to have to play a lot of games when we're in foul trouble, and we have to learn how to finish the games."
ABOUT THE WIZARDS (6-12): Washington was a horrid 9-for-46 from 3-point range against the Raptors, with point guard John Wall (1-for-7) and forwards Otto Porter Jr. (1-for-6), Kelly Oubre Jr. (0-for-6) and Jeff Green (0-for-5) all struggling. Wall scored just 11 points - his second-lowest output of the season - but recorded 11 assists for his fourth double-double of the campaign. Center Dwight Howard (buttocks) is expected to miss his third straight game after recently aggravating the injury that caused him to sit out the first seven contests of the season.
BUZZER BEATERS
1. The Wizards scored 116 points in each of last season's two wins against the Pelicans.
2. New Orleans G E'Twaun Moore scored just three points on 1-of-7 shooting against the Knicks after averaging 27 on 24-of-41 shooting over the previous two games.
3. Washington backup G Austin Rivers is 5-for-23 shooting over his last four contests.