New Orleans Pelicans – Houston Rockets · NBA

Win probability changed during the game. · 13 March 2026

NOP105–107HOU

Is it worth watching?

Recommended

It was more exciting than 75% of NBA games since 2017

It measures how much the win probability moved during the game —without looking at who won or at the score— and compares it with the 10,950 NBA games with a curve since 2017. “Highly recommended” is the most intense 20%, “recommended” runs from 50% to 80%, and “skippable” is the rest. Source: ESPN.

↑ HOU winsNOP wins ↓

Home team's win probability across the game (source: ESPN). The band rises when HOU leads and falls when NOP does.

This is how the game was decided.

Kevin Durant decided it, the Houston Rockets player with the most points (32, with 6 rebounds and 5 assists; -1 with him on the floor); the winner's best plus-minus was Amen Thompson's (+11). The criterion: the winner's points in the box score; plus-minus says who was on the floor when the game opened up.

The game-winner in Houston Rockets 107-105 New Orleans Pelicans (March 13, 2026) was hit by Kevin Durant: a jump shot with 7.6 s left in the fourth quarter, putting the Houston Rockets up 105-104. They never trailed again.

The biggest run of Houston Rockets 107-105 New Orleans Pelicans (March 13, 2026) was a 9-0 run by the Houston Rockets between the first quarter and the second quarter, from 21-24 to 30-24. The New Orleans Pelicans' best was a 8-0 run between the third quarter and the fourth quarter, from 70-80 to 78-80.

With 35 points, this is Dejounte Murray's highest-scoring game of the 2025‑26 regular season.

What were the keys of the last Houston Rockets vs New Orleans Pelicans game?

▸See where these figures come from

Play: Kevin Durant makes 18-foot pullup jump shot (Jabari Smith Jr. assists).

I count as the game-winner the basket that puts the winning team ahead for good. Source: the official NBA play-by-play (since 2002-03) and each team's official box scores.

A run here is consecutive points by one team without the opponent scoring. Source: the official NBA play-by-play (since 2002-03) and each team's official box scores.

Source: the game's official box score and play-by-play.

It is compared by points with all his official NBA box scores in that scope; it is the same criterion the Analyst uses.

Kevin Durant decided this game: his points put his team ahead with 7.6 seconds left in the fourth quarter, and the opponent never led again.

It is one of the 13 games he has decided this way in the NBA since the 2002-03 season.

His profile shows the games Durant decided

▸See where these figures come from

A game is decided by the last basket that puts a team ahead in the final ten seconds of the fourth quarter or of an overtime, if that team wins.

13 March 2026 · The source is the ESPN play-by-play, play espn:401810819:680; the date is the one on the NBA box score.

Rotations · who was on the floor

Closing lineup · NOP

Murphy · Williamson · Murray · Missi · Matkovic

Closing lineup · HOU

Durant · Thompson · Smith · Finney-Smith · Capela

Q1Q2Q3Q4

NOP

Trey Murphy III

37′ · +7

Herbert Jones

35′ · +3

Zion Williamson

34′ · -3

Dejounte Murray

31′ · +19

Saddiq Bey

30′ · -15

Yves Missi

25′ · +1

Derik Queen

12′ · -11

Jeremiah Fears

13′ · -11

Karlo Matkovic

22′ · 0

HOU

Kevin Durant

40′ · -1

Amen Thompson

40′ · +11

Jabari Smith Jr.

38′ · +4

Dorian Finney-Smith

27′ · +5

Tari Eason

19′ · 0

Reed Sheppard

32′ · -1

Clint Capela

22′ · -5

Josh Okogie

13′ · +4

Jeff Green

9′ · -7

Each bar is a stint on the floor (source: NBA). The number is minutes played and the team's +/− with him on the court. NOP and HOU.

These lineups played the most minutes together.

New Orleans Pelicans

Murray, Williamson, Bey, Jones, and Murphy played 11.5 minutes together.
Their team won that stretch by 1 point.
Murray, Jones, Murphy, Matkovic, and Missi played 5.7 minutes together.
Their team won that stretch by 7 points.
Murray, Williamson, Bey, Murphy, and Matkovic played 3.9 minutes together.
Their team won that stretch by 3 points.

Houston Rockets

Finney-Smith, Smith, Eason, Thompson, and Durant played 15.8 minutes together.
Their team won that stretch by 2 points.
Finney-Smith, Smith, Thompson, Sheppard, and Durant played 6.6 minutes together.
Their team won that stretch by 8 points.
Smith, Thompson, Sheppard, Green, and Capela played 5.0 minutes together.
Their team lost that stretch by 3 points.

▸See every lineup of the game

New Orleans Pelicans

Williamson, Bey, Missi, Fears, and Queen played 3.1 minutes together.
Their team lost that stretch by 7 points.
Murray, Jones, Murphy, Missi, and Queen played 3.0 minutes together.
Their team won that stretch by 3 points.
Williamson, Jones, Murphy, Missi, and Fears played 2.9 minutes together.
Their team won that stretch by 6 points.
Murray, Williamson, Jones, Murphy, and Matkovic played 2.8 minutes together.
Their team won that stretch by 1 point.
Murray, Williamson, Bey, Matkovic, and Missi played 2.7 minutes together.
Their team won that stretch by 2 points.
Williamson, Bey, Jones, Murphy, and Matkovic played 2.7 minutes together.
Their team lost that stretch by 8 points.
Bey, Jones, Missi, Fears, and Queen played 2.1 minutes together.
Their team lost that stretch by 1 point.
Jones, Murphy, Missi, Fears, and Queen played 2.1 minutes together.
Their team lost that stretch by 6 points.
Williamson, Bey, Matkovic, Fears, and Queen played 1.7 minutes together.
Their team tied that stretch.
Williamson, Bey, Matkovic, Missi, and Fears played 1.4 minutes together.
Their team lost that stretch by 3 points.
Murray, Williamson, Jones, Murphy, and Missi played 1.3 minutes together.
Their team won that stretch by 2 points.
Bey, Jones, Murphy, Matkovic, and Missi played 1.0 minutes together.
Their team lost that stretch by 2 points.

Houston Rockets

Smith, Thompson, Sheppard, Durant, and Capela played 4.4 minutes together.
Their team lost that stretch by 4 points.
Okogie, Smith, Thompson, Sheppard, and Capela played 3.3 minutes together.
Their team won that stretch by 6 points.
Finney-Smith, Okogie, Sheppard, Durant, and Capela played 3.0 minutes together.
Their team lost that stretch by 3 points.
Okogie, Eason, Sheppard, Durant, and Green played 2.7 minutes together.
Their team lost that stretch by 2 points.
Okogie, Thompson, Sheppard, Durant, and Capela played 2.6 minutes together.
Their team won that stretch by 6 points.
Okogie, Smith, Sheppard, Durant, and Capela played 1.5 minutes together.
Their team lost that stretch by 4 points.
Finney-Smith, Thompson, Sheppard, Durant, and Capela played 1.3 minutes together.
Their team lost that stretch by 3 points.
Smith, Thompson, Sheppard, Durant, and Green played 1.2 minutes together.
Their team lost that stretch by 2 points.

▸See where these figures come from

The lineups come from the NBA's official rotation: who was on the floor and when. Each lineup's plus-minus is worked out from every player's stints and is only shown when they all add up with each other and with the final score.

Amen Thompson covered 4.68 km, more than anyone in the game.

Amen Thompson touched the ball 79 times, a game high.
Amen Thompson made 55 passes, a game high.
Yves Missi had 22 rebound chances, a game high.

▸See what was measured for each player

New Orleans Pelicans

Player	km	km/h	Touches	Passes
Trey Murphy III	4.17	6.2	58	38
Herbert Jones	4.05	6.3	46	30
Zion Williamson	4.02	6.5	46	29
Dejounte Murray	3.57	6.4	76	50
Saddiq Bey	3.43	6.2	29	17
Yves Missi	2.94	6.3	25	20
Karlo Matković	2.57	6.1	17	13
Jeremiah Fears	1.63	6.8	28	17
Derik Queen	1.35	6.4	21	16

Houston Rockets

Player	km	km/h	Touches	Passes
Amen Thompson	4.68	6.3	79	55
Jabari Smith Jr.	4.39	6.2	60	42
Kevin Durant	4.23	5.9	68	38
Reed Sheppard	3.73	6.2	61	42
Dorian Finney-Smith	3.09	6.4	34

How far does Amen Thompson run per game?

The figures come from the NBA's optical tracking (NBA.com) for this game; speed is each player's average while on the floor.

Who guarded whom

Herbert Jones guarded Kevin Durant for 7.9 minutes, over 34 possessions.
In that time, Kevin Durant scored 11 points and made 5 of 6 shots.
Dejounte Murray guarded Amen Thompson for 5.3 minutes, over 22 possessions.
In that time, Amen Thompson scored 2 points and made 1 of 2 shots.
Amen Thompson guarded Dejounte Murray for 4.9 minutes, over 22 possessions.
In that time, Dejounte Murray scored 6 points and made 2 of 2 shots.

▸See all 28 matchups of two minutes or more

New Orleans Pelicans defending

Defender	Attacker	Min	Poss	Pts (FG)
Jones	Durant	7.9	34	11 (5/6)
Murray	Thompson	5.3	22	2 (1/2)
Williamson	Smith	3.9	17	3 (1/2)
Murphy	Sheppard	3.1	14	0 (0/0)
Murphy	Smith	3.0	12	0 (0/1)
Murphy	Finney-Smith	3.0	15	0 (0/1)
Murray	Sheppard	2.8	10	0 (0/1)
Fears	Sheppard	2.7	11	3 (1/3)
Williamson	Eason	2.6	9	0 (0/3)
Bey	Finney-Smith	2.5	8	0 (0/0)
Queen	Capela	2.2	8	2 (1/2)
Matković	Smith	2.2	11	2 (1/3)
Bey	Smith	2.2	11	1 (0/2)
Missi	Capela	2.1	11	2 (1/2)
Jones	Thompson	2.1	9	8 (2/4)

Houston Rockets defending

Defender	Attacker	Min	Poss	Pts (FG)
Thompson	Murray	4.9	22	6 (2/2)
Capela	Missi	4.1	18	1 (0/1)
Smith	Williamson	4.0	18	5 (1/2)
Durant	Jones	3.9	18	5 (2/3)
Smith	Murphy	3.6	16	6 (2/4)

Matchups come from the NBA's tracking (NBA.com) for this game: how long each defender guarded each attacker and what the attacker produced in that time. Only matchups of two minutes or more are shown.

Who stood out on defense during the season

These figures cover the whole 2025-26 regular season, not this game.

New Orleans Pelicans

Herbert Jones deflected 3.5 passes per game over his 56 games.
He ranks 13 of 399 in the league.
Trey Murphy III deflected 2.8 passes per game over his 66 games.
He ranks 33 of 399 in the league.
Yves Missi contested 6.8 shots per game over his 66 games.
He ranks 39 of 399 in the league.

Houston Rockets

Amen Thompson recovered 0.9 loose balls per game over his 79 games.
He ranks 9 of 399 in the league.
Reed Sheppard deflected 3.5 passes per game over his 82 games.
He ranks 12 of 399 in the league.
Tari Eason recovered 0.8 loose balls per game over his 60 games.
He ranks 16 of 399 in the league.

Hustle figures come from the hustle stats the NBA publishes (NBA.com) and rim defense comes from its tracking; both cover the regular season. For each player in this game we show the figure that ranks him highest in the league, and for each team, the three best ranked. Ranks count players with at least 30 games and, at the rim, at least 4 defended shots per game.

The Houston Rockets have won 31 of their 51 games against the New Orleans Pelicans.

31-20record of the Houston Rockets · NBA 2013-14 – 2025-26, regular season and playoffs

3-1in 2025-26

See the full head-to-head in the Analyst

See where it comes from

Official NBA box scores, regular season and playoffs, 2013-14 – 2025-26. It counts every game between the two teams that the house holds, this one included.

SportiveWorld knows much more about this game

Game context

Attendance

18.055

100% of capacity

Toyota Center · Houston

Scoring

212

combined points

19.2 below the season average (231.2)