(New Orleans) CJ McCollum had 23 points as the New Orleans Pelicans crushed the Toronto Raptors 120-90 on Monday.
Posted at 10:32 p.m.
Acquired from the Blazers last week, McCollum was 5-for-8 on three-point shooting.
Jonas Valanciunas backed him up with 18 points and nine rebounds.
Fred VanVleet had 20 points for the Raptors, who were beginning a five-game road trip.
Pascal Siakam added 18 points and Chris Boucher provided 15 points, including nine on free throws.
Scottie Barnes struggled with a 2-for-10 performance in continuous play.
He was limited to five points – two more than OG Anunoby, also a starter.
Gary Trent also had a night to forget, with six points. In 15 shots, he only hit twice.
Shots from beyond the perimeter weighed heavily in the balance: Toronto was 8 for 34 in that regard, crowd favorites 16 for 36.
The Raptors next stop will be Minnesota on Wednesday.
Toronto (31-25) remained in seventh place in the East, a game and a half ahead of the Brooklyn Nets.
Nick Nurse’s group lost a second game in a row, after eight straight wins. The team had won five times in a row abroad.
Obtained from Spurs last Thursday, Thaddeus Young made his debut with the Raptors. In 12 minutes, he had four points and four rebounds.
The Pelicans fight for the 10and place in the West.
The Raptors didn’t threaten after a 12-0 streak from the Pelicans, overlapping the first and second quarters.
After that, the Pelicans led 34-17.
Prior to that flurry, the visitors had picked up nine straight points including seven from VanVleet, to cut the Pelicans’ lead to 22-17.