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Behind the Numbers presented by HUB International: Pelicans at Mavericks (3/4/20)

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DALLAS – A look at three key numbers related to Wednesday’s game at American Airlines Center between New Orleans and Dallas (8:30 p.m. Central, ESPN, Fox Sports New Orleans, ESPN New Orleans 100.3 FM):

0, 1: Games played against Dallas this season for New Orleans’ pair of starting bigs, Zion Williamson and Derrick Favors, respectively. Sure, the Mavericks have thoroughly dominated in holding a 3-0 edge over the Pelicans in the season series – particularly controlling the latter two of the matchups – but New Orleans has also been extremely short-handed. The only time Favors suited up vs. the Mavericks was in the Pelicans’ home opener, all the way back on Oct. 25. The New Orleans rotation has changed so much since the last meeting with Dallas on Dec. 7 that now-key Pelicans reserve E’Twaun Moore only logged a total of eight minutes in one appearance against the Mavericks. Conversely, rookie center Jaxson Hayes and second-year forward Kenrich Williams have the fourth- and sixth-highest minute averages vs. Dallas this season for New Orleans, but both frontcourt players are currently out of the rotation due to coach’s decision or injury.

6: NBA teams that have more wins on the road than at home, a group that includes both New Orleans and Dallas. For whatever reason, the Pelicans have gone 12-19 in the Smoothie King Center, but are 14-16 on the road, the latter a success rate that could come in handy soon, with five of the team’s next six games outside Louisiana. The Mavericks are 21-11 on the road – second-best in the Western Conference – but barely over .500 in American Airlines Center at 16-14. New Orleans has the conference’s eighth-most road victories, but only its 12th-most home wins. Over the course of the 2019-20 season, the two Pelicans who’ve probably seen the biggest spike in individual performance on the road are Brandon Ingram and Nicolo Melli, both of whom are shooting over 50 percent from the field and 40 percent from three-point range when they travel for games. Team-wise, the most significant difference in New Orleans’ effectiveness comes at the defensive end. Oddly, the Pelicans are the NBA’s third-worst defensive team in home games (112.7 points allowed per 100 possessions), but are middle of the pack at No. 18 on the road (111.4).

51.9: Dallas guard Luka Doncic’s shooting percentage from the field this season in three games vs. New Orleans, the All-Star’s highest rate against any Western Conference team (also higher than that of any team he faced more than once, other than his 57.1 percent against Cleveland in two meetings). The Pelicans are far from the only team the recently-turned 21-year-old has tormented this season, but he’s been particularly effective and consistent in the three-game season series. Doncic has shot at least 50 percent in every game, while notching a pair of 33-point outings, as well as a 25-point night. He’s the biggest individual reason why the Mavericks have rolled to wins over the Pelicans by increasingly greater margins of seven, 21 and 46 points.

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