New Orleans Pelicans (25-49, 11th in the Western Conference) vs. Toronto Raptors (40-32, sixth in the Eastern Conference)
Toronto; Friday, 8:30 p.m. EDT
BETMGM SPORTSBOOK LINE: Raptors -8.5; over/under is 227.5
BOTTOM LINE: New Orleans hits the road against Toronto looking to break its four-game road skid.
The Raptors have gone 19-16 at home. Toronto is 7-4 in one-possession games.
The Pelicans are 9-27 on the road. New Orleans ranks third in the Western Conference with 16.6 fast break points per game led by Trey Murphy III averaging 3.3.
The Raptors average 113.9 points per game, 5.4 fewer points than the 119.3 the Pelicans give up. The Pelicans are shooting 46.6% from the field, 0.1% lower than the 46.7% the Raptors’ opponents have shot this season.
The teams meet for the second time this season. The Pelicans won 122-111 in the last matchup on March 12.
TOP PERFORMERS: Scottie Barnes is averaging 18.5 points, 7.8 rebounds, 5.5 assists and 1.5 blocks for the Raptors. Ja’Kobe Walter is averaging 2.2 made 3-pointers over the last 10 games.
Derik Queen is scoring 11.3 points per game and averaging 6.8 rebounds for the Pelicans. Zion Williamson is averaging 20.3 points and 5.2 rebounds over the last 10 games.
LAST 10 GAMES: Raptors: 5-5, averaging 116.2 points, 40.1 rebounds, 30.0 assists, 9.2 steals and 5.1 blocks per game while shooting 49.7% from the field. Their opponents have averaged 114.6 points per game.
Pelicans: 5-5, averaging 116.9 points, 43.6 rebounds, 26.2 assists, 9.3 steals and 5.7 blocks per game while shooting 48.5% from the field. Their opponents have averaged 113.4 points.
INJURIES: Raptors: Immanuel Quickley: out (foot).
Pelicans: Trey Murphy III: day to day (ankle), Bryce McGowens: day to day (toe).
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The Associated Press created this story using technology provided by Data Skrive and data from Sportradar.
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