New Orleans Pelicans forward Trey Murphy III (25) pushes past Phoenix Suns forward Dillon Brooks (3) during the first half of a basketball game at the Smoothie King Center in New Orleans, Saturday, Dec. 27, 2025. (Photo by Sophia Germer, The Times-Picayune)
STAFF PHOTO BY SOPHIA GERMER
Little changed in 24 hours for the Phoenix Suns and New Orleans Pelicans
Devin Booker scored 20 points to lead seven Suns in double figures as they defeated the Pelicans 123-114 on Saturday night in the Smoothie King Center, one night after their 115-108 victory in the same building.
Dillon Brooks added 18, Collin Gillespie scored 17, Jordan Goodwin had 16, Royce O’Neale chipped in 15, Jamoree Bouyear scored 12, and Mark Williams added 10 before being ejected along with Pelicans guard Jose Alvarado after a confrontation late in the third quarter.
Trey Murphy scored 24 (while making a season-high six 3-pointers), Zion Williamson scored 22, Derik Queen finished with 21 points and 11 rebounds, Jeremiah Fears had 18, and Saddiq Bey scored 17 to lead the Pelicans (8-25).
Queen, on his 21st birthday, scored 10 points as New Orleans began the second half with a 16-8 run to get within 73-71. Brooks’ 3-pointer stopped the surge, and Phoenix (18-13) quickly expanded the lead to 10.
The Pelicans pulled within 87-83 on a Murphy 3-pointer before the Suns increased the lead to 93-85 at the end of the period.
Bey scored the first four points of the fourth quarter to trim the lead to four, but Phoenix quickly increased the lead to 102-91. Bey and Queen scored four each, and Murphy’s 3-pointer concluded a 9-0 run that pulled New Orleans within 107-104.
Booker scored seven straight Suns points, and he added a jumper for a nine-point lead with 1:50 left.
The Pelicans, who had trouble keeping the Suns off of the offensive glass in the first half Friday, started even worse Saturday. After piling up seven offensive rebounds and 11 second-chance points in the first quarter Friday, Phoenix had 10 offensive rebounds and 16 second-chance points in the first period Saturday.
The quarter featured four ties and a fifth lead change came on a layup by Alvarado with 14.9 seconds left, giving New Orleans a 33-32 edge at the end of the period.
Gillespie made a 3-pointer to start the second quarter, and he added two more during a 16-6 run that gave the Suns a 48-38 lead. Phoenix led by 12 points on three occasions before Williamson’s layup trimmed the lead to 65-55 at halftime.
Phoenix finished the half with 17 offensive rebounds (one more than it had for the game Friday) and 24 second-chance points (one more than it finished with Friday). The Suns finished with a season-high 22 offensive rebounds and 30 second-chance points.