Houston Rockets (41-25) beat New Orleans Pelicans (22-46) 107-105 at home on Friday, March 13 in a game that stayed within 8 points at every quarter break.
The game, quarter by quarter
The Rockets struck first, taking the opening quarter 28-24 and a 4-point lead after one. The Rockets kept the pressure on with a 29-25 second quarter, carrying a 8-point lead into halftime.
The teams matched each other with 23 points apiece in the third quarter, so the Rockets remained ahead by 8 entering the fourth. The Pelicans took the fourth 33-27; the Rockets held on for a 107-105 regulation win.
The edge that mattered
The Rockets grabbed 35.3% of their own misses, while the Pelicans recovered 30.6%. The Rockets took better care of the ball, turning it over on 12.6% of possessions compared with 13.9% for the Pelicans. In a 2-point game, the second chances kept adding up.
The Pelicans did win one battle, the free-throw line: FT rate of 21.4 against 13.8. The Rockets made up for it elsewhere.
At roughly 95 possessions per team, the Rockets produced 113.3 points per 100 possessions to 111.2 for the Pelicans.
Who made the difference
Dejounte Murray was the game's biggest individual force for NOP: 35 pts, 7 reb, 4 ast on 14-18 shooting. His Game Score of 29.9 led everyone. His team was +19 with him on the floor.
Kevin Durant led the Rockets with 32 pts, 6 reb, 5 ast on 13-24 shooting, good for a 26.4 Game Score.
Amen Thompson (23 pts, 12 reb, 8 ast) recorded a double-double.
What it means
The result fit the pre-game Win Meter, which gave the Rockets about a 81% chance.
Across the last 6 meetings in our records, Houston Rockets lead 5-1.
The Rockets are now 41-25, and the Pelicans are 22-46. The Rockets last five before this game: L-W-L-W-L.
Written automatically by Tip Off Live software from box score data. Ratings and probabilities are our own model estimates.