James Borrego hopes his team’s shooting level matches its defensive intensity when the New Orleans Pelicans take a second shot at a first win for their interim coach Monday night against the visiting Oklahoma City Thunder.
Sitting at the end of the New Orleans bench for the first time in the wake of the firing of coach Willie Green, Borrego watched his team put forth a spirited defensive effort against the Golden State Warriors in a 124-106 home loss on Sunday night.
But the Pelicans shot just 28% on 3-pointers (8 of 29) and were outscored 72-24 from deep in a loss that otherwise would have gone down as a tremendous success against Golden State’s All-Star guard Stephen Curry, who was held to nine points.
New Orleans had allowed opponents to score 118 or more points in each of Green’s final four outings, prompting Borrego to proclaim before Sunday’s game that improved defense would be the top priority under his watch.
“Our defense is lacking in communication,” the former Charlotte Hornets head coach told reporters. “The goal is that we improve in that.”
The Warriors won by burying 24 3-pointers at a 43% success rate, but the Pelicans showed immediate improvement in forcing 21 turnovers, limiting the visitors to 36 points in the paint and battling Golden State almost evenly on the boards.
One night after harassing Curry, who had scored 46 and 49 yards in his previous two games, into 2-for-11 shooting overall and 1-for-6 on 3-pointers, the Pelicans’ task gets no easier on the second night of a back-to-back when Shai Gilgeous-Alexander is among the visiting Thunder.
The league’s reigning Most Valuable Player went for 30 points when the clubs met on Nov. 2 in Oklahoma City. The Thunder won 137-106.
The defending champions have allowed more points than 106 points just twice since that meeting. Their 109-96 win at Charlotte on Saturday gave them a five-game run — all wins — in which they’ve allowed an average of 98.2 points.
Despite leading the Hornets 55-52 at halftime, Thunder coach Mark Daigneault had to remind his guys where their bread is buttered — at the defensive end.
“In the third (quarter), we got the defense in a really good spot. Got back, settled into the half court, forced them to play half-court basketball, and the stops created some running opportunities,” he explained at his postgame media conference. “So I thought we had a great response out of halftime. We course-corrected nicely.”
Gilgeous-Alexander’s 30-point performance in the earlier matchup with the Pelicans was one of 12 in 14 games this season. It was also his first head-to-head with Pelicans guard Jeremiah Fears, who starred at the University of Oklahoma as a freshman last season before turning pro.
Fears entertained his old fans with 16 points in his Oklahoma homecoming, part of a run of 10 straight games scoring in double figures as a 19-year-old rookie. He was the No. 7 pick in the June draft.
Fears had 17 points in Sunday’s loss to Golden State.
