New Orleans Pelicans (23-16, seventh in the Western Conference) vs. Dallas Mavericks (23-16, sixth in the Western Conference)
Dallas; Saturday, 8:30 p.m. EST
FANDUEL SPORTSBOOK NBA LINE: Mavericks -2.5; over/under is 230
BOTTOM LINE: Dallas hosts the New Orleans Pelicans after Kyrie Irving scored 44 points in the Dallas Mavericks' 128-124 victory against the New York Knicks.
The Mavericks are 17-13 against Western Conference opponents. Dallas is seventh in the league averaging 118.8 points and is shooting 47.3% from the field.
The Pelicans are 4-5 against the rest of the division. New Orleans is fourth in the Western Conference with 44.3 rebounds per game led by Jonas Valanciunas averaging 9.8.
The 118.8 points per game the Mavericks score are 7.0 more points than the Pelicans give up (111.8). The Pelicans are shooting 48.6% from the field, 0.7% higher than the 47.9% the Mavericks' opponents have shot this season.
The teams meet for the third time this season. The Pelicans won 131-110 in the last matchup on Nov. 15. Brandon Ingram led the Pelicans with 25 points, and Irving led the Mavericks with 17 points.
TOP PERFORMERS: Irving is averaging 24.8 points and 5.3 assists for the Mavericks. Tim Hardaway Jr. is averaging 17.2 points over the last 10 games for Dallas.
Zion Williamson is shooting 58.2% and averaging 22.3 points for the Pelicans. CJ McCollum is averaging 3.9 made 3-pointers over the last 10 games for New Orleans.
LAST 10 GAMES: Mavericks: 6-4, averaging 118.1 points, 40.8 rebounds, 25.8 assists, 8.4 steals and 5.2 blocks per game while shooting 48.5% from the field. Their opponents have averaged 114.6 points per game.
Pelicans: 6-4, averaging 117.1 points, 44.4 rebounds, 27.6 assists, 8.8 steals and 6.4 blocks per game while shooting 49.8% from the field. Their opponents have averaged 106.8 points.
INJURIES: Mavericks: Dereck Lively II: day to day (ankle), Luka Doncic: out (ankle), Maxi Kleber: day to day (toe), Grant Williams: day to day (ankle), Josh Green: day to day (illness), Dante Exum: out (heel).
Pelicans: Matt Ryan: out (calf).
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The Associated Press created this story using technology provided by Data Skrive and data from Sportradar.
The Associated Press
