The New Orleans Pelicans Must Be Ready To 'Out-Hustle And Out-Muscle' The Houston Rockets

The New Orleans Pelicans (26-21) travel to battle the Houston Rockets (22-24) on Wednesday night in the Toyota Center. New Orleans is currently on a three-game losing streak, and a loss to the Rockets would put the Pels on their second-longest losing streak of the season. More importantly, New Orleans is seeking its first win versus the Rockets this season.

Houston won the first two games by a combined five points. The Pelicans' late-game woes continue, which manifested again in Boston on Monday night. New Orleans boasts one of the worst clutch records in the NBA, and turnovers are a key culprit.

When there are less than five minutes left in the game and the score difference is within five points, they have the highest turnover percentage in the league at 20.5%.

New Orleans is averaging 17 turnovers against the Rockets this season, averaging just 102.5 points versus Houston. The Rockets are averaging just 12 made three-pointers per game but outscored the Pelicans from beyond the arc in both of their previous meetings this season.

The Pelicans need to get CJ McCollum back into a rhythm of shooting three-pointers. McCollum is just 4/16 (25%) over his last three games.

A bright spot for the Rockets is the play of center Alperen Sengun. In the first two matchups this year, he dominated the Pelicans in the interior, averaging 30.5 points and 9.5 rebounds a game against New Orleans.

The third-year Turkish player has an opportunity to make his first all-star appearance this season. He finished fifth in the Western Conference fan voting amongst forwards. The Pelicans' combination of Jonas Valanciunas and Zion Williamson must dominate the interior paint area, which will be challenging against the stingy Houston defense.

The Rockets give up the fourth-fewest opponent paint points in the league (46.3). Williamson averages the second-most paint points in the league, so it is a matchup of strength-on-strength.

Nevertheless, the Pelicans' mindset should be about the physicality and purpose in this matchup. Coach Green challenged New Orleans by publicly saying the Rockets were the more formidable team.

"They're a tougher team than we are right now," Coach Green told reporters after the last Rockets loss. He continued, "Until we learn that, it's going to be tough for us to win these games."

Tonight is the first matchup between these teams since those comments, so New Orleans should look to prove otherwise to their coach. The Pelicans last lost a season series to the Rockets in the 2019-2020 season. A loss on Wednesday ensures that, but it won't come easy on the road in Houston.

The Rockets are tied for third in the Western Conference with 17 home wins. New Orleans has one more road game against the Spurs on Friday before returning home to face the Toronto Raptors on Monday night.

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