National Basketball Association
New Orleans 127, Portland 110
When: 7:00 PM ET, Sunday, March 12, 2023
Where: Smoothie King Center, New Orleans, Louisiana
Officials: #33 Sean Corbin, #72 JT Orr, #39 Tyler Ford
Attendance: 16676

Trey Murphy III scored a career-high 41 points and led a barrage of 3-pointers as the host New Orleans Pelicans routed the Portland Trail Blazers 127-110 on Sunday night.

Murphy, in his second season, made 13 of 20 field-goal attempts, including a career-high nine 3-pointers on 14 attempts, as the Pelicans shot 19 of 40 from beyond the arc. Former Trail Blazers player CJ McCollum added 22 points, making 4 of 8 3-pointers, and 11 assists.

Josh Richardson scored 19 points, making 4 of 8 3-pointers, Herbert Jones Jr. added 16 and Jonas Valanciunas finished with 11 points and 12 rebounds. New Orleans had 35 assists on 43 field goals.

Anfernee Simons scored 17 points, Shaedon Sharpe and Kevin Knox II added 14 each, Cam Reddish had 11 and Matisse Thybulle, Nassir Little and Trendon Watford had 10 each to lead Portland, which finished a 2-4 road trip.

Blazers leading scorer Damian Lillard (32.1 ppg) was a late scratch because of right calf soreness, and Pelicans second-leading scorer Brandon Ingram (22.9) missed his second consecutive game because of a sprained ankle.

The Pelicans took a 2-1 lead in the season series as the home team won for the first time. The series concludes March 27 in Portland.

A 3-pointer by Jones started the third-quarter scoring, and he added another basket during a 13-5 run that gave New Orleans an 87-59 lead. The Pelicans led by as many as 39 in the fourth quarter before emptying the bench.

Both teams shot at least 60 percent from the floor in the first quarter, but the Pelicans' 3-point shooting made a big difference. New Orleans made 7 of 10 from beyond the arc and Portland made 1 of 5.

Murphy finished with 15 points, making 3 of 4 3-pointers, McCollum added 11 points, making 2 of 3 3-pointers, and the Pelicans took a 42-25 lead at the end of the period.

Thybulle sank a 3-pointer to start the second-quarter scoring, and he made another 3-pointer to pull the Blazers within 53-46.

Murphy made two 3-pointers and McCollum and Richardson made one each as New Orleans rebuilt the lead to 74-54 at halftime.

--Field Level Media

Top Game Performances
 
Portland   New Orleans
Anfernee Simons 17 Scoring Trey Murphy III 41
Jerami Grant 4 Assists CJ McCollum 11
Drew Eubanks 7 Rebounds Jonas Valanciunas 12
Jerami Grant 3 Free Throws Made Trey Murphy III 6
Matisse Thybulle 3 Steals Josh Richardson 4
Keon Johnson 1 Blocks Josh Richardson 2
Team Stats Summary
 
Team Points FG% 3PM-3PA FTM-FTA Assists Rebounds Blocks Steals Turnovers
Portland 110 48.9 10-33 14-20 26 46 2 10 19
New Orleans 127 50.0 19-40 22-29 35 43 7 11 15
Upcoming Games
  • New Orleans will play their next game at home against L.A. Lakers. The Pelicans have a W/L % of .515 after a win and .457 after a loss.
  • Portland will play their next game at home against New York. The Trail Blazers have a W/L % of .419 after a win and .486 after a loss.