New Orleans faces Houston on 3-game slide

New Orleans Pelicans (26-21, eighth in the Western Conference) vs. Houston Rockets (22-24, 11th in the Western Conference)

Houston; Wednesday, 8 p.m. EST

BOTTOM LINE: New Orleans aims to end its three-game skid with a win over Houston.

The Rockets are 16-11 in conference matchups. Houston ranks third in the Western Conference in rebounding with 45.7 rebounds. Alperen Sengun leads the Rockets with 9.2 boards.

The Pelicans are 5-6 against the rest of their division. New Orleans scores 116.6 points while outscoring opponents by 3.5 points per game.

The Rockets average 12.0 made 3-pointers per game this season, 1.6 fewer makes per game than the Pelicans give up (13.6). The Pelicans average 12.2 made 3-pointers per game this season, 0.2 fewer makes per game than the Rockets give up.

The two teams match up for the third time this season. The Rockets defeated the Pelicans 106-104 in their last matchup on Dec. 24. Sengun led the Rockets with 37 points, and Zion Williamson led the Pelicans with 28 points.

TOP PERFORMERS: Jalen Green is scoring 18.2 points per game and averaging 4.9 rebounds for the Rockets. Sengun is averaging 23.3 points and 10.0 rebounds over the last 10 games for Houston.

Jonas Valanciunas is averaging 13.9 points and 9.6 rebounds for the Pelicans. Williamson is averaging 18.2 points over the last 10 games for New Orleans.

LAST 10 GAMES: Rockets: 4-6, averaging 117.6 points, 48.1 rebounds, 25.7 assists, 8.2 steals and 6.0 blocks per game while shooting 46.5% from the field. Their opponents have averaged 119.6 points per game.

Pelicans: 4-6, averaging 119.8 points, 43.6 rebounds, 28.2 assists, 7.7 steals and 4.2 blocks per game while shooting 49.5% from the field. Their opponents have averaged 118.8 points.

INJURIES: Rockets: Victor Oladipo: out (knee), Tari Eason: out (leg).

Pelicans: None listed.

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The Associated Press created this story using technology provided by Data Skrive and data from Sportradar.