New Orleans and Memphis met on November 13, 2026, with both teams needing a response after opening West Group B play with losses. The stakes were simple: win here and stay in the conversation, lose and the path to advancement becomes much harder.
The New Orleans Pelicans came in after a 145-111 loss to the Brooklyn Nets on Wednesday, while Memphis arrived off a 123-118 defeat to the Denver Nuggets. New Orleans had also dropped four straight and had allowed at least 130 points in three consecutive games, a run that has put the defensive side of the conversation front and centre.
Why the defensive numbers matter
Jamahl Mosley did not hide from the issue. “The numbers speak for themselves,” he said, before adding: “That's three games in a row of 130-plus (points allowed). It's a combination of a lot of things: Our will and our want to defend at a high level, night in and night out; my job as the coach to get them prepared; and then the ability to stay tied together when things don't go our way.”
That is the heart of the problem for New Orleans. The scoring output has not been enough to offset repeated defensive breakdowns, and that becomes even more damaging in a tournament setting where every result has direct consequences. Against a Memphis side that had started the season strongly before a recent downturn, the margin for error was already thin.
Zion Williamson asks for accountability
Zion Williamson’s message was about the group as much as the result. “As a unit,” Williamson said, “players, coaches, everybody, we have to look in the mirror when you're by yourself and ask, ‘Did I do everything I need to do for my team?' It starts internally.”
That kind of self-assessment matters when a team has let games drift away too easily. The concern is not only what happens on the scoreboard, but how quickly the contest can move out of reach if the defensive standard drops.
Memphis know the first quarter matters
Ty Jerome’s comments captured the urgency on the Memphis side. “It's easy to say, ‘Oh, we could've done this, we could've done that,'” he said. “The real issue was how we played in the first half.”
He added: “It feels like half the games we play, we're down 15 in the first or second quarter,” and the point is hard to ignore. In a game like this, a slow start does more than hurt rhythm; it changes the whole shape of the night.
Jerome’s conclusion was blunt: “I told the guys after the game, ‘We have to play hard from the jump. Shots can fall or shots can not fall, but we can't play soft and slow. We're never going to beat teams like that.'”
Memphis will know exactly what he means. They had won six consecutive victories earlier in the season and four of five before this recent dip, so the level is there. The issue now is whether they can bring that standard back quickly enough in West Group B.
The numbers behind the matchup
New Orleans and Memphis had already played one thriller recently, with New Orleans edging Memphis 135-134 in overtime on November 2, 2026. That result showed how close the two teams can be when both are functioning properly.
This time, the broader context was different. New Orleans had just been routed 145-111 and Memphis had just fallen 123-118, so the pressure was on both sides to reset fast. In tournament play, especially after back-to-back losses, the next game is never just about the points scored. It is about whether a team can show it belongs in the race at all.
For both the Pelicans and the Grizzlies, that made November 13 less of a routine regular-season date and more of a survival test in West Group B.
