Minnesota and New Orleans meet for conference showdown

New Orleans Pelicans (19-51, 14th in the Western Conference) vs. Minnesota Timberwolves (40-31, eighth in the Western Conference)

Minneapolis; Friday, 8 p.m. EDT

BOTTOM LINE: Trey Murphy III and the New Orleans Pelicans take on Anthony Edwards and the Minnesota Timberwolves on Friday.

The Timberwolves have gone 28-19 against Western Conference opponents. Minnesota scores 113.4 points while outscoring opponents by 4.0 points per game.

The Pelicans are 13-33 against Western Conference opponents. New Orleans averages 13.6 turnovers per game and is 13-20 when winning the turnover battle.

The Timberwolves’ 15.1 made 3-pointers per game this season are just 0.4 more made shots on average than the 14.7 per game the Pelicans give up. The Pelicans average 12.1 made 3-pointers per game this season, 0.5 fewer makes per game than the Timberwolves allow.

TOP PERFORMERS: Edwards is averaging 27.6 points, 5.8 rebounds and 4.6 assists for the Timberwolves. Julius Randle is averaging 18 points, 6.4 rebounds and 5.5 assists over the past 10 games.

Murphy is averaging 21.2 points, 5.1 rebounds and 3.5 assists for the Pelicans. CJ McCollum is averaging 2.7 made 3-pointers over the last 10 games.

LAST 10 GAMES: Timberwolves: 8-2, averaging 122.0 points, 42.6 rebounds, 28.3 assists, 9.4 steals and 5.0 blocks per game while shooting 49.3% from the field. Their opponents have averaged 110.7 points per game.

Pelicans: 3-7, averaging 109.6 points, 43.0 rebounds, 27.1 assists, 6.4 steals and 5.0 blocks per game while shooting 46.6% from the field. Their opponents have averaged 121.3 points.

INJURIES: Timberwolves: None listed.

Pelicans: Brandon Boston Jr.: out (ankle), Trey Murphy III: out for season (shoulder), Herbert Jones: out for season (shoulder), Dejounte Murray: out for season (leg).

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The Associated Press created this story using technology provided by Data Skrive and data from Sportradar.