The New Orleans Pelicans were hoping to carry the momentum of four straight wins into the All-Star break, but they ran into a scrappy, professional Thunder team that did all of the little things right. The Thunder half court defense was stifling at times, leading to 17 Pelicans’ turnovers that translated into 24 points. Surprisingly, the largely half court Thunder even won the fast break points 19-10, most of which came off Pelicans’ turnovers.
The Pelicans hung in and kept it close throughout, mostly behind the low-post brilliance of Zion Williamson and some timely, but streaky shooting from J.