The New Orleans Pelicans have had difficulty rebounding all season long.
But their acquisition of center Kelly Olynyk — combined with the absence of Victor Wembanyama for the San Antonio Spurs — led to a dominant rebounding performance by the Pelicans in a 114-96 victory against the visiting Spurs on Sunday night.
New Orleans, which won for just the second time in 13 games, will host San Antonio again Tuesday night.
The Pelicans are fifth-to-last in the NBA in scoring defense (118.9) partly because they rank last in defensive rebounding — grabbing just 67.6 percent of their opponents’ misses. Foes score too frequently on possessions after missing their first shot, but not Sunday against the Spurs.
“Our defense was really solid,” Pelicans head coach Willie Green said after his team allowed its second-fewest points in a game this season. “An emphasis all season has been finishing possessions. I think we did a great job of that. It’s evident in having 69 rebounds.”
Olynyk wasn’t the only Pelican who enjoyed a big night against San Antonio. Starting center Yves Missi and backup Karlo Matkovic, both rookies, also had their way inside as New Orleans took advantage of the fact that Wembanyama, the Spurs’ leading rebounder, will miss the rest of the season with a blood clot in his right shoulder.
Olynyk, acquired from Toronto in a trade shortly before the deadline, had 14 points (one shy of his season high) and a season-high 15 rebounds. Matkovic had a season-high 19 points and six rebounds and Missi had a season-high 15 rebounds and six points.
“We want to see some of our young guys step on the floor and build some momentum, continue to attack each and every opportunity that they get,” Green said.
Reserve point guard Jose Alvarado, the shortest player on the team at 6-foot, had a career-high nine rebounds.
“It was a total group effort,” Green said after New Orleans had seven double-figure scorers.
The Pelicans outscored the Spurs in the paint (58-34) and in second-chance points (22-13).
“I think the rebounding is a little bit disproportionate because of how many shots we missed,” San Antonio interim coach Mitch Johnson said. “The 23-rebound differential goes to the 33 percent we shot from the field. We made 13 shots in the second half.”
Rebounding could be an even greater challenge for the Spurs on Tuesday depending on the availability of reserve center Charles Bassey, who grabbed a season-high 15 rebounds in 27 minutes Feb. 1 versus Miami. Bassey played just six minutes Sunday because of left knee soreness.
“I’m pretty frustrated for the kid,” Johnson said. “He’s put in a lot of work. No one feels sorry for you, but you play the hand you’re dealt and hopefully it will be a short-term thing.”
Starting center Bismack Biyombo led the Spurs against the Pelicans with 10 rebounds to go along with his 10 points. He received help from four fellow double-figure scorers, but didn’t receive comparable help on the boards.
San Antonio played well for more than half the game Sunday — holding a 17-point lead early in the third quarter — before being outscored 67-32 in the final 21 1/2 minutes.
“It snowballed in a catastrophic way in the second half,” Johnson said.
