March 11, 2026; New Orleans, Louisiana, USA; Toronto Raptors guard Emmanuel Quickley (5) dribbles against New Orleans Pelicans guard Dejunte Murray (5) during the first half at the Smoothie King Center. Mandatory Credit: Stephen Lew-Imagn Image Dejounte Murray scored a season-high 27 points to lead the Pelicans to a 122-111 victory over the visiting Toronto Raptors in New Orleans, giving the Pelicans their seventh win in their last 10 games.
The win derailed the return of former Pelicans star Brandon Ingram, who was in his first season in Toronto after spending the previous six seasons in New Orleans.
Ingram scored 22 points on 8-19 shooting from the field. Immanuel Quickley has 25 goals for Toronto. The Raptors are in a playoff chase in the Eastern Conference but have lost four of their last five games.
Toronto is the fifth team the Pelicans have beaten this season and currently holds the winning record.
Trey Murphy III scored a game-high 28 points for New Orleans. Zion Williamson put the exclamation point on the victory by scoring 19 points, including a powerful windmill dunk with 4 minutes, 11 seconds remaining.
After a back-and-forth first half that featured seven ties and eight lead changes, New Orleans took a 60-58 lead into intermission. Toronto went scoreless for about three minutes in the third quarter, and New Orleans took a 77-65 lead thanks to Herb Jones’ three points and a pair of Murray goals.
The lead peaked at 18 points following a Jones three with 3:54 left in the third, but Toronto fought back, pulling within 95-93 after Jamison Battle’s three-pointer with 10:15 left in the fourth. After New Orleans’ turnover, Toronto attempted two 3-point shots but were out.
New Orleans dominated the rest of the game.
Williamson started a 7-0 run with a free throw that gave New Orleans a 103-93 lead. A few minutes later, after a block by Yves Messi, Williamson won the ball on a 3-on-1 break and thrilled the crowd with a windmill slam to make it 113-99.
Murray drained a 3 after tricking Jamal Shead with 1:25 left and stood over Shead to say a few words. The players had to separate for a while. Murray received a technical foul for hostile conduct with his team leading 119-101.
Murray appeared in his seventh game this season after suffering an Achilles tendon injury last season.
–Field level media
