New Orleans Pelicans vs LA Clippers Match Player Stats: Every Number That Mattered This Season

Introduction

You searched for New Orleans Pelicans vs LA Clippers match player stats — but what you found was a wall of raw numbers, three different box score formats, and zero explanation of what any of it means.

That’s the real problem. Great data buried under terrible presentation.

This guide cuts through all of it. You get every individual stat, every team total, every momentum shift, and every historical context point for the New Orleans Pelicans vs LA Clippers matchup — organized clearly, explained simply, and all in one place.

A Quick Look at the Rivalry

Before jumping into individual performances, you need the bigger picture. This rivalry has real history behind it — and the numbers lean clearly in one direction.

14 The Pelicans and the Los Angeles Clippers have played 82 games New Orleans Pelicans vs LA Clippers Match Player Stats in the regular season, with 46 victories for the Pelicans and 36 for the Clippers. That’s not a slight edge — that’s a consistent, decade-long pattern of New Orleans holding the upper hand. 10 The Pelicans carry an overall record of 46–36 (56.1%) against the Clippers, and in regular season games alone, that mark stands at 45–36 (55.6%). 12 In total, the two franchises have played 83 games counting season, playoffs, and other games — but the playoff column reads zero wins for either side. They’ve never met in a postseason series. Every single win and loss in this rivalry came during the regular season grind.

That’s actually meaningful context. There’s no bad blood from a playoff elimination, no dramatic Game 7 memory — just a clean, competitive record that keeps tilting toward New Orleans.

The Most Recent Matchups: 2025–26 Season Summary

The 2025–26 season gave fans three meetings between these teams — and they told three different stories.

Game 1 — March 1, 2026: Clippers 137, Pelicans 117 (Away)

3 The Clippers beat the Pelicans 137–117 on a Sunday night to snap a three-game losing streak, with Kawhi Leonard leading LA with 23 points. 3 Jeremiah Fears put up 28 points on 10-of-15 shooting for New Orleans, while Yves Missi grabbed 8 rebounds (4 defensive, 4 offensive) in the losing effort. Brook Lopez led the Clippers on the glass with 7 boards, all defensive.

The Clippers shot 54% from the floor that night and held the lead for 99% of the game. New Orleans never really threatened. Their largest lead was zero.

Game 2 — March 18, 2026: Pelicans 124, Clippers 109 (Home Win)

This one was completely different — and far more dramatic.

1 The Clippers jumped out to an early lead and built a cushion in the first quarter (40–26), but New Orleans flipped the game entirely in the second half, outscoring LA 36–25 in the third quarter alone. 1 Kawhi Leonard led LA with 25 points on 9-of-12 shooting, while Saddiq Bey paced New Orleans with 25 points of his own on 10-of-21 from the floor. Karlo Matkovic led the Pelicans on the glass with 8 total boards (4 offensive, 4 defensive), matching Leonard’s 8 rebounds for LA.

That comeback from 18 down is the kind of moment that defines a team’s resilience. New Orleans didn’t panic — they just played better basketball as the game went on.

Game 3 — March 19, 2026: Pelicans 105, Clippers 99 (Home Win)

Back-to-back home wins. Same result, different hero.

2 The Pelicans won 105–99 to push their home winning streak to seven games, with Trey Murphy III taking the lead role offensively. 2 Murphy finished with 27 points on 9-of-17 shooting (4-of-4 from the free-throw line), while Yves Missi dominated the paint with 11 rebounds (8 defensive, 3 offensive). For LA, Derrick Jones Jr. led all scorers with 22 points on 7-of-11 shooting, including a perfect 7-of-7 from the charity stripe. John Collins led the Clippers on the boards with 8 rebounds, all defensive.

The fourth quarter told the whole story — the Clippers scored just 15 points in the final period while New Orleans put up 18 to close it out.

Team Totals and Efficiency Comparison

Here’s how each game breaks down side by side, so you can see exactly where the tide shifted in the New Orleans Pelicans vs LA Clippers matches.

March 1, 2026 — Full Team Efficiency

The Clippers controlled every minute of that game. The turnover gap (17 vs 9) was the difference before you even get to shooting percentages.

March 18, 2026 — Full Team Efficiency

The Pelicans shot nearly 15% better from three-point range and went to the free-throw line far more efficiently — that’s what flipped an 18-point deficit into a 15-point win.

March 19, 2026 — Full Team Efficiency

The free-throw gap in Game 3 was enormous. The Clippers shot 59% from the line on 32 attempts — that’s 13 missed free throws that could have changed the final score completely.

Scoring Leaders and Individual Stat Breakdown

New Orleans Pelicans — Player-by-Player Numbers

Jeremiah Fears scored 28 points on 10-of-15 shooting in the March 1 loss, making him the most efficient scorer across all three games on a per-shot basis. That performance didn’t get the win — but it showed exactly what this 20-year-old rookie can do when he gets comfortable.

Yves Missi’s rebounding across two of the three games was a consistent bright spot. Eleven boards in Game 3 — eight of them defensive — gave the Pelicans clean defensive possessions at critical moments in the fourth quarter.

LA Clippers — Player-by-Player Numbers

Kawhi Leonard was the most consistent performer on the Clippers’ side across all three games. His 9-of-12 shooting performance in the March 18 loss (75% from the floor) was statistically outstanding — but his team lost by 15. That tells you how completely the Clippers’ supporting cast disappeared that night.

Derrick Jones Jr. showed up with 22 points and a flawless 7-of-7 from the free-throw line in Game 3. When he’s that efficient, LA becomes hard to stop. The problem was their fourth-quarter offensive collapse wiped all of that out.

Paint Scoring and Interior Performance

The inside game between these two teams shifted from one contest to the next — and it had a direct impact on outcomes.

One number stands out immediately — the Clippers grabbed zero offensive rebounds in both March 18 and March 19. That means every missed shot ended New Orleans’ possession immediately. No second chances, no putback points, no resetting plays.

For New Orleans, Matkovic pulled in 4 offensive boards in a single game — a high-energy performance that directly extended possessions during the comeback.

Ball Movement and Assist Production

Good offense runs through passing — and the numbers here help explain why the Pelicans managed to control large stretches of both home wins.

The Pelicans’ ball movement in these home wins came through different sources each night — which actually makes it harder to guard. When your assists come from your wing players and not just your point guard, defenders can’t load up on one ball handler.

For LA, Darius Garland moved the ball well in Game 2 with 6 assists, but the Clippers still shot just 29% from three. Good passing can only do so much when shooters are cold.

Defensive Performance and Key Stops

Defense doesn’t always show up in the highlight reel — but it shows up in the final score.

March 18, 2026 — Defensive Breakdown

New Orleans held the Clippers to 29% from three-point range after giving up 47% in the previous meeting. That’s a 18-point swing in shooting efficiency from Game 1 to Game 2.

March 19, 2026 — Defensive Breakdown

The Clippers’ fourth-quarter defense was actually strong — they held New Orleans to just 18 points in the final period. But their own offense collapsed to just 15 points in Q4, which ended any chance of a comeback.

Step-by-Step Game-Changing Moments

March 1, 2026 — The One LA Got Right

The Clippers came out with a game plan built on pace and ball movement. They jumped ahead immediately, shot 47% from three, and controlled nearly every possession.

New Orleans tried to respond through Fears — who was brilliant — but turnovers (17 total) kept killing any rhythm the Pelicans built. By halftime, the Clippers led 76–70, and they never let New Orleans get close.

The turning point: The Clippers held a 26-point lead, their largest of the game, and never surrendered it. This was a wire-to-wire victory for LA.

March 18, 2026 — The Great Reversal

Q1: Clippers scored 40 points in the opening quarter. New Orleans looked flat, unorganized, and 18 points behind before the game had any rhythm.

Q2: Something clicked. Saddiq Bey started getting to his spots. New Orleans outscored the Clippers 34–20 in the second quarter, cutting the deficit before halftime.

Q3: The third quarter was all Pelicans. They outscored LA 36–25 and took control of the game completely, turning an 18-point deficit into a lead.

Q4: New Orleans managed the game. The Clippers outscored them 24–28 in the final period, but the Pelicans’ lead was too large to overcome. Final: 124–109.

Key moment: The Pelicans shot 43% from three in this game after LA shot 47% from three in Game 1. That shooting reversal, combined with 95% free-throw shooting, changed everything.

March 19, 2026 — The Sequel That Delivered

Q1–Q3: Both teams played nearly even basketball across the first three quarters. The Pelicans led for 54% of the game, but LA stayed close.

Q4: New Orleans went up 18–15 in the fourth quarter, a small but decisive edge. The Clippers simply ran out of offense when it mattered most.

2 The Pelicans stretched their home winning streak to seven games with that 105–99 result.

Key moment: The Clippers shot 59% from the free-throw line across the whole game. On 32 attempts, that’s roughly 13 missed free throws. At the end of a six-point game, those misses are the entire margin.

What the Numbers Tell Us About Each Team

New Orleans Pelicans — Reading Between the Lines

The Pelicans finished the 2025–26 season at 26–56. 4They landed 11th in the West, finishing with the same record as the Dallas Mavericks but clinching the tiebreaker via a 3–1 season series win.

4 Head coach Willie Green was fired 12 games into the season after a 2–10 start, with associate coach James Borrego stepping in as the interim head coach.

That kind of instability — mid-season coaching changes, roster injuries, losing seasons — typically buries teams. But the Pelicans still managed back-to-back home wins over a play-in team in March.

4 New Orleans was eliminated from playoff contention on March 24, 2026, following their loss to the New York Knicks — the second consecutive year they missed the postseason.

Analytical takeaway: The Pelicans are a team that plays better basketball at home when their rotations are set. Their 16–21 home record understates how competitive they were late in the season.

LA Clippers — Reading Between the Lines

5 The Clippers opened the year by going 5–16 in their first 21 games, coinciding with a 2–13 record in November that became regarded as the worst month in franchise history. 5 Then, after starting 6–21, the Clippers suddenly won 16 out of 19 games to reach 22–24. That’s one of the most dramatic mid-season turnarounds in the Western Conference this year. 4 The Clippers finished 42–40 and secured a play-in berth.

Analytical takeaway: The Clippers who beat New Orleans 137–117 on March 1 were a completely different team from the one that dropped games 2 and 3. Their performance is directly tied to Leonard’s availability and their three-point shooting. When both are consistent, they’re hard to beat. When either dips, they collapse late in games.

Looking Back: How the Rivalry Has Unfolded Over Time

16 Since 2004, the Clippers and Pelicans have played 82 games. The Clippers averaged 103.5 points per game in those matchups, while the Pelicans averaged 104.4 — a small but persistent edge that reflects in the win-loss column.

Here’s how the rivalry shifted across different eras:

The Clippers’ biggest win in this rivalry came on March 1, 2014, when they won 108–76 — a 32-point blowout. 11That remains LA’s largest margin of victory against New Orleans in franchise history.

The Pelicans’ biggest win came on January 13, 2022, when they won by 24 points (113–89).

Why Player Stats Matter in This Matchup

Looking at the New Orleans Pelicans vs LA Clippers match player stats isn’t just about knowing who scored what. The numbers tell a story about which team executes better under pressure.

When Yves Missi pulls in 11 rebounds, New Orleans wins. When the Clippers shoot below 32% from three-point range, they lose road games. When free-throw percentage drops below 65% for LA, their offense becomes completely unpredictable.

These aren’t random fluctuations — they’re consistent patterns. The stats confirm what the eye test suggests: the Pelicans are more consistent at home with their rotation players healthy, and the Clippers are almost unrecognizable when Leonard doesn’t get support.

For deeper historical box scores, visit Basketball Reference. For live game updates and player tracking data, check ESPN and CBS Sports NBA.

Final Thoughts and Fan Community Takeaways

The 2025–26 New Orleans Pelicans vs LA Clippers matches gave basketball fans three genuinely interesting games — not all of them competitive, but all of them revealing.

LA took Game 1 convincingly. New Orleans responded with two straight home wins, including a dramatic 18-point comeback that showed real competitive spirit from a team that was well out of the playoff race.

For Pelicans fans: the talent is here. Missi, Murphy, Bey, and Fears all showed they can carry games. The roster needs health and a full season under a stable coaching staff to realize what these late-season performances hint at.

For Clippers fans: the turnaround from 6–21 to a play-in spot was remarkable. But the road record (losing twice in New Orleans in back-to-back nights) shows this team still has work to do away from Intuit Dome.

The New Orleans Pelicans vs LA Clippers rivalry doesn’t have a playoff chapter yet — but based on where both rosters are heading, that might not be far away.

Frequently Asked Questions

Who won the most recent New Orleans Pelicans vs LA Clippers game?

The Pelicans won the most recent matchup 105–99 on March 19, 2026. Trey Murphy III scored 27 points and Yves Missi grabbed 11 rebounds to lead New Orleans to their seventh straight home win.

What is the all-time head-to-head record between the Pelicans and Clippers?

New Orleans leads 46–36 all-time in the regular season. That’s 82 total games played, with no playoff series between them ever.

 How did the Pelicans come back from 18 points down against the Clippers?

New Orleans outscored LA 34–20 in the second quarter and 36–25 in the third quarter on March 18, 2026, turning a large deficit into a commanding lead. Better three-point shooting (43% vs 29%) and 95% free-throw accuracy were the difference.

 Who was the top scorer across all three 2025–26 Pelicans vs Clippers games?

Jeremiah Fears scored 28 points in the March 1 loss on 10-of-15 shooting — the highest-efficiency scoring performance across all three games. Trey Murphy III’s 27 points in Game 3 was the top mark in a winning effort.

 Did the Clippers make the playoffs in 2025–26?

The Clippers finished 42–40 and secured a play-in tournament spot after one of the most dramatic mid-season turnarounds in the Western Conference, going from 6–21 to a winning record by the end of February.