The New Orleans Pelicans will play their third game in four nights when they take on the Houston Rockets tonight.
The Pelicans have a 2-7 overall record heading into their matchup tonight after they split their last two games.
In a Friday night home loss to the Toronto Raptors, New Orleans’ defense continued to struggle by giving up 122 points.
Turns out the Raptors aren’t half-bad after they went into Los Angeles and beat the Lakers on Sunday.
Regardless, the defensive issues were still present for the Pelicans in their seventh loss of the year.
They bounced back with a 115-110 road win over the Charlotte Hornets on Saturday. It was the second night of a back-to-back for New Orleans as six players scored in double figures.
Brandon Ingram led the way on Saturday with 25 points. Ingram has now led the Pelicans in scoring in seven of the team’s nine games.
New Orleans now turns their sights to a home game against the Rockets.
Houston beat the Pelicans earlier this season 126-123 despite a standout performance from Ingram. He recorded 35 points, 15 rebounds and five assists in the first meeting.
James Harden and Russell Westbrook have powered the Rockets to a three-game winning streak. Harden is averaging 37.1 points, 8.2 assists and 5.6 rebounds per game this year. His shooting percentages are down from last season. The Rockets’ shooting guard is shooting 39.4 percent from the field and just 30 percent from three.
Westbrook has averaged a triple-double in his last three seasons with the Oklahoma City Thunder. In his first season with the Rockets, Westbrook is averaging 21.4 points, 9.2 rebounds and 7.9 assists.
The two do-it-all guards for Houston go into the Smoothie King Center facing off the Pelicans’ leaders Ingram and Holiday.
The Rockets are currently sit at third place in the Western Conference with a 6-3 overall record.