Clippers hit the road for back-to-back with soaring Pelicans
After an extended homestand ended with a thud, the Los Angeles Clippers will be out to solidify their play-in tournament status with back-to-back road games against the New Orleans Pelicans starting Wednesday.
The Pelicans enter with a five-game home winning streak that is part of an 8-4 record since Feb. 21.
The Clippers were on a 7-1 run before losing consecutive home games, including a 119-115 defeat to the San Antonio Spurs on Monday while playing without leading scorer Kawhi Leonard. In a 118-109 loss to the Sacramento Kings on Saturday, Leonard departed in the fourth quarter with a sprained left ankle.
Listed as questionable for Wednesday's game, Leonard will be on Los Angeles' three-game road trip that includes a stop at Dallas. His presence on the court has proved vital with the Clippers, who rank eighth in the Western Conference, now 4-11 when he does not play.
The Clippers showed high energy at the start and the end of Monday's loss but in between, they fell behind by as many as 24 points and ran out of time to complete a late rally.
Darius Garland scored 25 points with 10 assists in his seventh game with the Clippers, who acquired him from the Cleveland Cavaliers at the trade deadline. Bennedict Mathurin, who was acquired from the Indiana Pacers at the deadline, scored 16 points.
"I thought he made the right decisions, made the right reads," Clippers head coach Tyronn Lue said of Garland. "He's getting his feel, getting his timing. (He) missed a few layups around the basket that he normally makes, but he's only going to get better."
Garland was still recovering from a toe injury when the Clippers earned a 137-117 home victory over the Pelicans on March 1. Leonard scored 23 points as the Clippers had at least 30 points in every quarter.
Rookie Jeremiah Fears scored a career-high 28 points off the bench for the Pelicans in the defeat. New Orleans was without Zion Williamson in what was essentially a day of rest to close a back-to-back scenario, ending his career-best run of 35 consecutive games played.
Williamson has played in 42 of the past 43 games, though, and scored 27 points on 11-of-13 shooting in a 129-111 home victory over the Dallas Mavericks on Monday. Saddiq Bey added 23 points as New Orleans shot 50.5% from the floor.
Dejounte Murray, who has played just eight games this season after recovering from a ruptured Achilles tendon, missed the victory with an illness.
New Orleans had 31 assists, its seventh most in a game this season and above the team's average of 25.1.
"It felt like within the flow, the ball was moving, we were finding the right guy, playing together, sharing it, moving it," Pelicans head coach James Borrego said. "We've grown in that area a tremendous amount and we still have a ways to go.
"We should be knocking on the doorstep of 30-plus every night. ... Now we have another challenge here on Wednesday against a very good (Clippers) defense. Can we do it again?"