The New Orleans Pelicans didn’t just win on Monday night - they dominated. Behind a balanced offensive attack and stifling defense, the Pelicans rolled past the Sacramento Kings 120-94, posting their largest margin of victory this season and sending Sacramento to a painful milestone in the process.
Trey Murphy III led the charge with 21 points and seven assists, showcasing his smooth shooting stroke and growing playmaking chops. Zion Williamson added his usual blend of power and finesse with 18 points, six assists, and five boards, operating like a freight train in transition and a point forward in the halfcourt. The Pelicans looked sharp, confident, and connected - a team that’s starting to click at the right time.
The Kings, meanwhile, are spiraling. Monday’s loss marked their 13th straight - the longest losing streak since the franchise moved to Sacramento in 1985.
The all-time franchise record is 14, set back when they were still the Cincinnati Royals. That’s the kind of history no team wants to revisit.
New Orleans didn’t waste time asserting control. Sacramento had a brief lead in the first quarter, but a Trey Murphy triple followed by a Jeremiah Fears bucket flipped the momentum, and the Pelicans never looked back. From there, it was all about extending the lead - and they did just that in every quarter.
Murphy and Williamson were especially effective in the third, combining for 14 of the team’s 31 points in the period. The highlight? A thunderous dunk from Yves Missi that pushed the lead to 30 late in the quarter and sent the Smoothie King Center crowd into a frenzy.
Fears, the rookie guard, brought serious juice off the bench with 20 points, while Saddiq Bey chipped in 12. The Pelicans as a whole shot a blistering 54% from the field and hit 16 threes at a 41% clip - efficient, confident, and unselfish basketball. The ball movement was crisp, too, with 30 assists to just 13 turnovers.
Defensively, New Orleans made life miserable for Sacramento, especially beyond the arc. The Kings shot a brutal 4-of-31 from deep - that’s just 12.9%. Combine that with 17 turnovers and just 19 assists, and you’ve got a recipe for a long night.
Still, there were a few bright spots for the Kings. Rookie Maxime Reynaud put together an impressive performance with 21 points and a career-high 19 rebounds - a true double-double effort that showed his potential.
Russell Westbrook added 17 points, including eight in the third quarter, while Devin Carter and Nique Clifford chipped in off the bench. Dylan Cardwell grabbed 11 boards, continuing to be a presence on the glass.
But when your team is shooting under 13% from three and struggling to generate consistent offense, even solid individual efforts can get lost in the shuffle.
Karlo Matkovic gave the Pelicans another lift off the bench with 12 points and nine rebounds, knocking down a pair of threes and helping New Orleans’ second unit outscore Sacramento’s bench 53-30. That kind of depth performance is exactly what playoff-caliber teams need down the stretch.
The Pelicans are trending in the right direction - two straight wins, a growing sense of identity, and a roster that’s starting to gel. For the Kings, the road doesn’t get any easier, and the pressure to snap this skid is mounting with every game.
Next up for Sacramento: a trip to Utah to face the Jazz, followed by matchups against Orlando, San Antonio, and Memphis. If they’re going to turn things around, it has to start soon.