The Pelicans’ final winning streak

« To limit them to just three points in the period… That’s a win that was built on defense tonight “, I can congratulate James Borrego, the interim coach of the Pelicans. The latter caused a sensation in the winning on the floor of Spurs on Sunday night.

To face the Texans, the technician from New Orleans decided to once again set up a very big five, without playmakers (Trey Murphy, Herb Jones, Zion Williamson, Sadiq Bey and Derrick Quinn), as he did in the previous victory in Memphis.

The gamble paid off as her team dominated the debates, physically especiallyin a good part of the game. To the point of taking up to 20 points in advance in the third quarter. Only the Spurs signed a very big “run”, going through two quarters, to raise and even regain a two-possession advantage (92-87) five minutes from the end.

How did the Pels keep their composure? ” Understanding that it is a series match. We had a few highlights earlier in the meeting. They are one of the best teams in the West for a reason. They did their ‘escape’. We answered well », sums up Zion Williamsonauthor of 24 points and 10 rebounds, only his 3rd double-double of the season, but 2nd in a row.

Yves Missy turned into a defensive wall

After the break, local dynamics suddenly stopped. On the ensuing possession, Victor Vembanyama was forced to drop the ball to Devin Vassell’s contested 3-pointer. On the next possession, Ives Missy blocked De’Aaron Fox’s pass to “Wembey” in the lane. The defensive move was turned into a lightning-quick counterattack by the Pelicans with a dunk by Williamson.

And later, the same Missy denied an attempt by Johnson in the circle, and then Trey Murphy III punished a step back with a 3-pointer. In the back, NOLA’s defense caused another turnover from Fox, who lost a dribble. The guests finished the match with an impressive 17-3.

« We discussed the importance of winning the battle for possession; we thought the match would be played there. The idea was to make them lose the ball while limiting ours, and obviously win the rebounding battle. Tonight we rushed the balls. Second chance… It was just a great effort at both ends of the pitch », greets Borrego.

Still last in the West, his team certainly has one of its signature wins of the year, with the one against the Rockets in overtime in mid-December. ” What I am most proud of is our defense at the very end of the game. In the decisive moments, we managed to find our defensive rhythm. The same thing happened in the last Memphis game. Our defense allowed us to win. »

The Pelicans will try to reproduce this recipe to finish their “journey” on Tuesday in Oklahoma City, on the floor of the Thunder.