Russell, Timberwolves take on the Pelicans
Minnesota Timberwolves (17-42, 14th in the Western Conference) vs. New Orleans Pelicans (26-34, ninth in the Western Conference)
New Orleans; Tuesday, 8 p.m. EST
BOTTOM LINE: New Orleans faces Minnesota in a matchup of Western Conference teams.
The Pelicans are 16-23 against Western Conference opponents. New Orleans is the Western Conference leader with 11.1 offensive rebounds per game led by Derrick Favors averaging 3.2.
The Timberwolves are 8-28 against Western Conference opponents. Minnesota is 5-18 when turning the ball over more than opponents and averages 15.3 turnovers per game.
The teams meet for the second time this season. The Pelicans won 107-99 in the last matchup on Dec. 18. Brandon Ingram led New Orleans with 34 points, and Andrew Wiggins led Minnesota with 27 points.
TOP PERFORMERS: Favors leads the Pelicans with 10.0 rebounds and averages 9.3 points. Zion Williamson has averaged 24.5 points and collected 5.3 rebounds while shooting 53.7 percent over the last 10 games for New Orleans.
D'Angelo Russell leads the Timberwolves averaging 7.7 assists while scoring 23.7 points per game. Malik Beasley has averaged 3.9 made 3-pointers and scored 20.3 points over the last 10 games for Minnesota.
LAST 10 GAMES: Pelicans: 6-4, averaging 119.5 points, 48.7 rebounds, 32.3 assists, 8.4 steals and 4.8 blocks per game while shooting 48.6 percent from the field. Their opponents have averaged 115.6 points on 47.7 percent shooting.
Timberwolves: 2-8, averaging 119.7 points, 41.1 rebounds, 24.5 assists, 9.1 steals and 5.6 blocks per game while shooting 45.4 percent from the field. Their opponents have averaged 126.1 points on 51.3 percent shooting.
INJURIES: Pelicans: Kenrich Williams: day to day (back), JJ Redick: out (hamstring), Darius Miller: out (achilles).
Timberwolves: Karl-Anthony Towns: out (wrist).
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The Associated Press created this story using technology provided by Data Skrive and data from Sportradar.