Spurs Humble Pelicans In Blowout

New Orleans Pelicans (6-7) management likes to reference the San Antonio Spurs (13-1) as the team they hope to become. Monday night near the Alamo, the Pelicans had about as much of a chance as the Mexican troops did at San Jacinto.

However, to call Monday night's matchup a "battle" would be a disservice to both the Spurs, the battle of the Alamo, and the battle of San Jacinto. It was simply a basketball clinic by San Antonio, as they gutted the Pelicans in the 2nd and 3rd quarters, outscoring them 64-41. When the final buzzer sounded, the Pelicans three-game winning streak seemed like a distant memory when looking at the scoreboard. San Antonio 112, New Orleans 93.

It wasn't pretty for the Pelicans, who simply played bad basketball. New Orleans missed a plethora of layups and short range shots. Defensively they were a step to late on nearly all of the Spurs 10 three-pointers. San Antonio was patient and precise with their passing, earning open looks on a lot of possessions.

"There were times when we were a bit discombobulated on the offensive end," explained Pels coach Monty Williams. "Defensively, they ran their sets hard and we didn't give them much resistance."

The Pelicans hope to become a franchise comparable to the Spurs one day. If Monday's night loss was anything for New Orleans, it was a lesson on how to win basketball games. San Antonio plays smart basketball, using the precision of their offensive system to make basketball look like clockwork.

Jrue Holiday had a decent stat line in the loss, finishing with 12 points, 9 rebounds, 7 assists, 3 steals, and 2 blocks. Ryan Anderson led all scorers with 17.

New Orleans returns home for the back end of their home/road back-to-back, hosting the Golden State Warriors (8-6) at 7:00. The Pelicans are 2-1 in back-to-backs this season.