Jonas Valanciunas (3rd L) and Trey Murphy III (R) of the New Orleans Pelicans fight for a rebound with Kelly Olynyk (2nd R) of the Toronto Raptors during the 2023-2024 NBA regular season game between the Toronto Raptors and the New Orleans Pelicans in Toronto, Canada, March 5, 2024. (Photo by Zou Zheng/Xinhua)
TORONTO, March 6 (Xinhua) — New Orleans Pelicans forward Trey Murphy III scored a season-high 34 points and tied his career high with 10 3-pointers in the victory team’s 139-98 loss to the Toronto Raptors on Tuesday night.
With the win, the Pelicans improved to 37-25 on the season and 19-13 on the road. Since bowing out of the tournament mid-season with a 44-point blowout loss to the Los Angeles Lakers in the semifinals, the team has turned its season around, amassing a 25-14 record, including 15-6 on the road.
In the win over Toronto, New Orleans excelled from beyond the arc, attempting a season-high 49 while converting 24, one shy of their season-best set on Jan. 17 against the Charlotte Hornets.
Guard Herb Jones also made a career-high five threes, including four in the first quarter alone, to finish with 17 points.
The first six minutes of the first quarter was a see-saw battle between the teams before Jones and his teammates went on a 23-7 run to close the quarter and take a 14-point lead.
The lead grew to 23 points after the second quarter and 30 after the third. The 41-point margin of victory is the largest this season for the Pelicans, eclipsing the 38-point win over the Raptors a month prior.
“Collectively, as a team, we put together a dominant performance,” Pelicans head coach Willie Green said after the team’s league-leading 15th victory by a margin of 20 points or more. “The challenge for us is to look in the mirror with the mentality that we want to dominate every game.”
All five starters finished with double-digit scoring despite playing less than 26 minutes each as the game was out of reach. Former No. 1 overall draft pick Zion Williamson had a well-balanced game with 16 points, nine assists and eight rebounds.
With 20 games remaining in the season, New Orleans remains fifth seed with 1.5 games ahead of Phoenix (35-26) and two games ahead of Sacramento (34-26). Green hopes to maintain his spot in the top six to avoid the play-in tournament after participating in it the past two seasons. ■
CJ McCollum (L) of the New Orleans Pelicans fights for a rebound with RJ Barrett of the Toronto Raptors during the 2023-2024 NBA regular season game between the Toronto Raptors and the New Orleans Pelicans in Toronto, Canada, March 5, 2024. (Photo by Zou Zheng/Xinhua)
Gary Trent Jr. (right) of the Toronto Raptors makes a layup during the 2023-2024 NBA Regular Season game between the Toronto Raptors and the New Orleans Pelicans in Toronto, Canada, on March 5, 2024. (Photo by Zou Zheng/Xinhua)
Jonas Valanciunas (front) of the New Orleans Pelicans fights for a rebound with Ochai Agbaji of the Toronto Raptors during the 2023-2024 NBA regular season game between the Toronto Raptors and the New Orleans Pelicans in Toronto, Canada, March 5, 2024. (Photo by Zou Zheng/Xinhua)
Zion Williamson (left) of the New Orleans Pelicans makes a layup during the 2023-2024 NBA regular season game between the Toronto Raptors and the New Orleans Pelicans in Toronto, Canada, on March 5, 2024. (Photo by Zou Zheng/Xinhua)
Larry Nance Jr. (center) of the New Orleans Pelicans makes a layup during the 2023-2024 NBA regular season game between the Toronto Raptors and the New Orleans Pelicans in Toronto, ON Canada, March 5, 2024. (Photo by Zou Zheng/Xinhua)
Javon Freeman-Liberty (left) of the Toronto Raptors makes a layup during the 2023-2024 NBA Regular Season game between the Toronto Raptors and the New Orleans Pelicans in Toronto, Canada, on March 5, 2024. (Photo by Zou Zheng/Xinhua)
Zion Williamson of the New Orleans Pelicans performs a dunk during the 2023-2024 NBA regular season game between the Toronto Raptors and the New Orleans Pelicans in Toronto, Canada on March 5, 2024. ( Photo by Zou Zheng/Xinhua)
Trey Murphy III (center) of the New Orleans Pelicans performs a dunk during the 2023-2024 NBA regular season game between the Toronto Raptors and the New Orleans Pelicans in Toronto, Canada, on March 5, 2024. (Photo by Zou Zheng/Xinhua)
Immanuel Quickley (right) of the Toronto Raptors makes a layup during the 2023-2024 NBA regular season game between the Toronto Raptors and the New Orleans Pelicans in Toronto, Canada, March 5 2024. (Photo by Zou Zheng/Xinhua)
Jonas Valanciunas (front) of the New Orleans Pelicans makes a layup during the 2023-2024 NBA regular season game between the Toronto Raptors and the New Orleans Pelicans in Toronto, Canada, on March 5, 2024. (Photo by Zou Zheng/Xinhua)
