New Orleans Pelicans vs Houston Rockets Prediction, 1/18/2026 Preview and Pick

Game: New Orleans Pelicans vs Houston Rockets

Date: Sunday, January 18, 2026

Location: Toyota Center in Houston, TX

TV: Space City Home Network

Toyota Center is the site where the Houston Rockets (23-15) will compete against the New Orleans Pelicans (10-33) on Sunday.

The Pelicans played the Nets and took home the win by a score of 116-113 in their last contest. Concerning fouls, the Pelicans ended up with 11 and the Nets recorded 21 fouls. They also converted 16 of their 43 attempts from distance. Brooklyn finished the contest at 58.3% from the free throw line by knocking down 7 of their 12 attempts. Furthermore, Brooklyn grabbed 43 rebounds (10 offensive, 33 defensive) and had 7 rejections. Brooklyn earned 24 assists and had 3 steals for this contest. In the matter of defending, New Orleans allowed their opponent to shoot 47.4% from the floor on 45 out of 95 shooting. They also doled out 24 assists for the matchup while forcing the opposition into 11 turnovers and earning 5 steals. When it comes to pulling down rebounds, they compiled 53 with 18 of them being of the offensive sort. At the free throw line, the Pelicans made 19 of 25 tries for a rate of 76.0%. New Orleans walked away from the game with a 44.3% FG percentage (43 of 97) and buried 11 of their 33 shots from beyond the perimeter.

Trey Murphy III is one guy who was a contributor for this contest. He scored 34 points on 12 of 22 shooting. He saw the court for 38 minutes and pulled down 9 boards. Murphy finished the game at 54.5% from the floor and also dished out 5 dimes.

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New Orleans heads into this game with a win-loss record of 10-33 so far this year. They are turning it over 14.7 times per contest and as a unit are committing 20.1 personal fouls every game. As a unit, New Orleans is snagging 43.5 boards per game and has tallied 1,068 assists for the campaign, which ranks 16th in the NBA in terms of passing the ball. The Pelicans are shooting 34.1% on 3-point shots (464 of 1,361) and 78.2% from the charity stripe. They have an average of 114.9 points per contest (20th in basketball) while hitting 46.4% from the floor.

On the defensive end of the court, the Pelicans have forced 14.9 turnovers per game while drawing 20.8 personal fouls. They are surrendering 36.1% on shots from downtown and they rank 28th in the league in PPG allowed (122.2). The Pelicans are giving up a FG percentage of 48.6% (1,905 of 3,923) and they concede 45.2 rebounds per contest as a team. They are ranked 29th in the league in giving up assists to the opposition with 1,241 surrendered on the campaign.

When they last stepped on the hardwood, the Rockets walked away from this one with a loss by a score of 111-91 against the Thunder. In reference to rebounding, Houston permitted Oklahoma City to snag 44 in total (7 on the offensive side). They went 39.0% from 3-point land by hitting 16 out of 41 and ended up going 13 out of 15 at the charity stripe (86.7%). The Rockets allowed the Thunder to make 41 out of their 89 tries from the field which gave them a shooting percentage of 46.1% for the contest. Overall, the Rockets ended up going 35 for 104 from the field which gave them a rate of 33.7%. When it comes to shots from beyond the perimeter, Houston knocked down 7 out of 24 attempts (29.2%). They were able to knock down 14 of them for a percentage of 82.4%. The Thunder were called for 16 fouls in the game which took the Rockets to the charity stripe for a total of 17 shots. They gave up possession 16 times, while recording 10 steals for this contest. The Rockets were able to collect 37 defensive boards and 23 offensive boards for a total of 60 in this matchup.

Kevin Durant was important for the Rockets for this game. He converted 7 of 23 in this matchup giving him a rate of 30.4%, and had 7 rebounds. Durant accumulated 19 points in his 37 mins on the court and had 3 assists for the contest.

Houston has a win-loss mark of 23-15 this season. On the offensive side of the court, the Rockets are hitting on 47.8% from the floor, which is ranked 8th in basketball. Houston has totaled 4,455 pts on the season (117.2 per contest) and they collect 49.4 boards per game. They are dishing out assists 24.9 times per contest (24th in the NBA) and they cough up possession 15.6 times per contest. The Rockets commit 19.4 fouls per contest and they go 76.8% from the charity stripe.

The Houston defense gives up 35.6% on shots from distance (481 of 1,353) and opponents are making 75.8% of their free throw attempts. They allow 24.2 dimes and 38.2 rebounds every game, which ranks 2nd and 1st in basketball. The Rockets on defense are ranked 3rd in basketball in points given up per game with 110.8. They have forced 13.4 TO's per game and have let teams shoot 46.2% from the field (8th in the NBA).

Who will win tonight's NBA game against the spread?

Josh Schonwald's Pick: Take New Orleans

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