NBA

New Orleans Pelicans at San Antonio Spurs

· National Basketball Association
18-50, 6-28 Away
Final
115 - 119

28-38, 17-17 Home

Vassell scores 22 points and Spurs hold off Pelicans, who were without Williamson

New Orleans Pelicans vs. San Antonio Spurs: Game Highlights

Keldon Johnson and Harrison Barnes each had 19 points for San Antonio and Stephon Castle added 17.

C.J. McCollum had 26 points, nine assists and seven rebounds for the Pelicans, who were without Zion Williamson. The team said the star power forward sat out because of personal reasons.

McCollum shot 5 for 12 on 3-pointers, including 4 for 5 while scoring 14 points in the second quarter. Trey Murphy III scored 20 points.

The Spurs were without Victor Wembanyama (blood clot in right shoulder) and De'Aaron Fox (left pinkie tendon damage).

New Orleans opened the second half on a 15-7 run to take their largest lead at 73-65. San Antonio responded by closing the third quarter on a 25-8 run.

Jeremy Sochan banked in a 3-pointer from halfcourt to give the Spurs a 92-83 lead entering the fourth.

Takeaways Pelicans: Kelly Olynyk shot 7 for 12 from the field, including a scoop shot he tossed in over his head while avoiding a defender's reach. He finished with 14 points, seven assists and six rebounds in 31 minutes.

Spurs: Veteran center Bismack Biyombo had two points and two rebounds in his 13th start in place of Wembanyama. Biyombo is averaging 5.0 points and 4.9 rebounds in March.

Key moment With the Spurs clinging to a 113-111 lead with 1:30 remaining, Johnson won a battle for the rebound of Castle's missed 3-pointer. Johnson passed it to Vassell, who drained a 3 from 26 feet to extend San Antonio's lead to 116-111 with 1:03 remaining.

Key stat San Antonio has 142 3-pointers in March, the most of any team. Boston is second with 139. The Celtics are 7-1 in March while the Spurs are 4-5.

Up next The Pelicans host Detroit on Monday, while the Spurs are at the Los Angeles Lakers that night.

Regular Season Series

Series tied 2-2

Recent Plays

4th 0.0 End of Game 115 - 119
4th 0.0 End of the 4th Quarter 115 - 119
4th 0.2 Bruce Brown offensive rebound 115 - 119
4th 0.2 Trey Murphy III misses 33-foot three point jumper 115 - 119
4th 4.1 Jose Alvarado enters the game for Karlo Matkovic 115 - 119

Statistics

https://a.espncdn.com/combiner/i?img=/i/teamlogos/nba/500/no.png&h=100&scale=crop&w=100&location=originNO https://a.espncdn.com/combiner/i?img=/i/teamlogos/nba/500/sa.png&h=100&scale=crop&w=100&location=originSA
46-92 FG 39-84
50.0 Field Goal % 46.4
12-35 3PT 16-39
34.3 Three Point % 41.0
11-11 FT 25-33
100.0 Free Throw % 75.8
52 Rebounds 37
12 Offensive Rebounds 8
40 Defensive Rebounds 29
34 Assists 26
2 Steals 10
3 Blocks 2
15 Turnovers 10
3 Team Turnovers 0
18 Total Turnovers 10
0 Technical Fouls 0
0 Total Technical Fouls 0
0 Flagrant Fouls 0
24 Points Conceded Off Turnovers 10
22 Fast Break Points 19
62 Points in Paint 40
20 Fouls 15
8 Largest Lead 11
San Antonio Spurs San Antonio Spurs Injuries
NAME, POS STATUS DATE
Dylan Harper, G Day-To-Day Jul 21
Riley Minix, F Day-To-Day Jul 20
Carter Bryant, F Day-To-Day Jul 19
Kelly Olynyk, PF Day-To-Day Jul 8
Devin Vassell, SG Day-To-Day Jul 3
New Orleans Pelicans New Orleans Pelicans Injuries
NAME, POS STATUS DATE
Derik Queen, C Day-To-Day Jul 22
Yves Missi, C Day-To-Day Jul 19
Micah Peavy, G Day-To-Day Jul 19
Herbert Jones, SF Day-To-Day Jul 10
Zion Williamson, PF Day-To-Day Jul 3

Game Information

Frost Bank Center

Location: San Antonio, TX
Attendance: 18,549 · Capacity:

2024-25 Southwest Standings

TEAM W L PCT GB STRK
Houston 52 30 .634 - L3
Memphis 48 34 .585 4 W1
Dallas 39 43 .476 13 L1
San Antonio 34 48 .415 18 W1
New Orleans 21 61 .256 31 L7
Full Standings

NBA News

McMenamin: Luka completely changed his offseason program

McMenamin: Luka completely changed his offseason program

Dave McMenamin details what Luka Doncic has done this offseason to change his body.

Tyrese Haliburton proposes to longtime girlfriend Jade Jones

Tyrese Haliburton proposes to longtime girlfriend Jade Jones

Haliburton staged the proposal inside Hilton Coliseum on the Iowa State campus, where the couple began dating.

Employee suing Suns for retaliation fired by organization

Employee suing Suns for retaliation fired by organization

The Phoenix Suns have fired an employee who is suing the team for discrimination, harassment and retaliation, ESPN has learned.

Marc Spears: Magic are a sleeper in the Eastern Conference

Marc Spears: Magic are a sleeper in the Eastern Conference

Marc Spears and Dave McMenamin discuss why the Magic and Nuggets deserve an A offseason grade.

Will playing for the Clippers extend Chris Paul's career?

Will playing for the Clippers extend Chris Paul's career?

Marc Spears and Dave McMenamin weigh in on how Chris Paul might continue playing beyond next season.