3rd quarter report
The Pelicans are giving their fans exactly what they were hoping for. They took a 99-98 lead against the Clippers.
The Pelicans entered the game with nine straight losses and are on pace to make it ten. Can they turn things around or will the Clippers hand them another loss? Only time will tell.
Who’s playing
Los Angeles Clippers @ New Orleans Pelicans
Current records: Los Angeles 18-13, New Orleans 5-27
How to watch
- When: Monday, December 30, 2024 at 8 p.m. ET
- Or: Smoothie King Center – New Orleans, Louisiana
- TV: FanDuel SN – Southern California
- Follow: CBS Sports app
- Online broadcast: Watch select NBA games on Fubo (Try for free. Regional restrictions may apply.)
- Ticket cost: $3.00
What you need to know
The Clippers are 2-8 against the Pelicans since January 2022 but they will have the opportunity to close the gap a little on Monday. The Los Angeles Clippers take a road trip to take on the New Orleans Pelicans at 8 p.m. ET at the Smoothie King Center. The Pelicans have home-court advantage, but the Clippers should win by 5.5 points.
The Clippers are heading into this one after bettors pegged last week’s low/under at 212, but even that proved too high. They came away with a 102-92 victory over the Warriors on Friday. Los Angeles pushed the score to 81-62 late in the third, a deficit Golden State reduced but from which it never really recovered.
Even though they won, the Clippers struggled to get the ball on offense and finished the game with just six offensive rebounds. They were smoked by their opponents in that department as the Warriors struck out 19.
Meanwhile, the Pelicans’ recent rough patch got a little tougher Friday after their ninth straight loss. They fell 132-124 to the Grizzlies.
The Pelicans’ defeat should not overshadow the performances of CJ McCollum, who had 32 points plus five rebounds, and Trey Murphy III, who had 35 points. Additionally, Murphy III also racked up five threes, the most he’s had since November.
Los Angeles has been on a hot streak lately: They’ve won four of their last five games, which has significantly improved to 18-13 this season. As for New Orleans, their loss dropped their record to 5-27.
The Clippers fell short against the Pelicans in the teams’ last game in March, losing 112-104. Can the Clippers avenge their loss or is history doomed to repeat itself? We’ll know soon enough.
Odds
Los Angeles is a solid 5.5 point favorite against New Orleans, according to the latest NBA Odds.
The punters were perfectly in tune with the betting community on this point, as the game opened with a 5.5 point spread and stayed there.
The over/under is 221.5 points.
See NBA Pick for every game, including this one, from SportsLine’s advanced computer model. Get Picks Now.
History of the series
New Orleans has won 8 of its last 10 games against Los Angeles.
- March 15, 2024 – New Orleans 112 vs. Los Angeles 104
- February 7, 2024 – New Orleans 117 vs. Los Angeles 106
- January 5, 2024 – Los Angeles 111 vs. New Orleans 95
- November 24, 2023 – New Orleans 116 vs. Los Angeles 106
- April 1, 2023 – New Orleans 122 vs. Los Angeles 114
- March 25, 2023 – New Orleans 131 vs. Los Angeles 110
- October 30, 2022 – New Orleans 112 vs. Los Angeles 91
- April 15, 2022 – New Orleans 105 vs. Los Angeles 101
- April 3, 2022 – Los Angeles 119 vs. New Orleans 100
- January 13, 2022 – New Orleans 113 vs. Los Angeles 89
