Gilgeous-Alexander, Thunder set for matchup against the Pelicans

Fri, Mar 10, 2023
NBA News (AP)

Oklahoma City Thunder (31-35, 12th in the Western Conference) vs. New Orleans Pelicans (32-34, 10th in the Western Conference)

New Orleans; Saturday, 8:30 p.m. EST

BOTTOM LINE: Shai Gilgeous-Alexander leads Oklahoma City into a matchup against New Orleans. He's fourth in the NBA scoring 31.2 points per game.

The Pelicans are 21-17 in Western Conference games. New Orleans has a 4-5 record in games decided by 3 points or fewer.

The Thunder have gone 18-23 against Western Conference opponents. Oklahoma City ranks seventh in the Western Conference with 14.4 fast break points per game led by Gilgeous-Alexander averaging 3.7.

The teams play for the fourth time this season. The Pelicans won the last matchup 103-100 on Feb. 14. Brandon Ingram scored 34 points to help lead the Pelicans to the win.

TOP PERFORMERS: CJ McCollum is averaging 21.2 points and 5.8 assists for the Pelicans. Ingram is averaging 25.7 points and 4.2 assists over the last 10 games for New Orleans.

Jalen Williams is scoring 13.3 points per game and averaging 4.2 rebounds for the Thunder. Josh Giddey is averaging 15.5 points and 7.3 rebounds over the last 10 games for Oklahoma City.

LAST 10 GAMES: Pelicans: 3-7, averaging 106.2 points, 39.6 rebounds, 24.3 assists, 8.0 steals and 3.6 blocks per game while shooting 47.2% from the field. Their opponents have averaged 112.9 points per game.

Thunder: 4-6, averaging 121.3 points, 43.4 rebounds, 25.8 assists, 8.8 steals and 2.7 blocks per game while shooting 46.2% from the field. Their opponents have averaged 119.2 points.

INJURIES: Pelicans: E.J. Liddell: out (knee), Larry Nance Jr.: out (ankle), Zion Williamson: out (hamstring), Jose Alvarado: out (tibia).

Thunder: Jalen Williams: day to day (wrist), Chet Holmgren: out for season (foot), Aleksej Pokusevski: out (leg), Kenrich Williams: out for season (wrist).

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The Associated Press created this story using technology provided by Data Skrive and data from Sportradar.