New Orleans Pelicans (13-8, third in the Western Conference) vs. San Antonio Spurs (6-16, 14th in the Western Conference)
San Antonio; Friday, 8 p.m. EST
BOTTOM LINE: San Antonio looks to break its three-game home slide with a victory over New Orleans.
The Spurs have gone 0-2 against division opponents. San Antonio has a 4-11 record against opponents above .500.
The Pelicans are 4-1 against opponents from the Southwest Division. New Orleans is third in the Western Conference scoring 117.1 points per game and is shooting 48.6%.
The teams play for the second time this season. The Pelicans won the last matchup 129-110 on Nov. 24, with Zion Williamson scoring 32 points in the victory.
TOP PERFORMERS: Keldon Johnson is shooting 36.0% from beyond the arc with 3.1 made 3-pointers per game for the Spurs, while averaging 20.3 points, 5.1 rebounds and 3.2 assists. Devin Vassell is shooting 48.0% and averaging 15.9 points over the last 10 games for San Antonio.
Williamson is scoring 23.1 points per game with 6.6 rebounds and 4.1 assists for the Pelicans. CJ McCollum is averaging 14.9 points and 4.9 assists over the last 10 games for New Orleans.
LAST 10 GAMES: Spurs: 1-9, averaging 107.0 points, rebounds, assists, steals and blocks per game while shooting % from the field. Their opponents have averaged 121.0 points per game.
Pelicans: 7-3, averaging 115.9 points, rebounds, assists, steals and blocks per game while shooting % from the field. Their opponents have averaged 107.5 points.
INJURIES: Spurs: Jakob Poeltl: out (quad), Jeremy Sochan: out (quad), Josh Richardson: out (ankle), Blake Wesley: out (knee).
Pelicans: Herbert Jones: day to day (ankle), E.J. Liddell: out (right knee), Brandon Ingram: out (toe), CJ McCollum: out (health and safety protocols), Naji Marshall: out (illness).
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The Associated Press created this story using technology provided by Data Skrive and data from Sportradar.
The Associated Press
