Toronto Raptors vs. New Orleans Pelicans: Live updates, highlights, stats and more

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Kyle Irving
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• 9 min read
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The NBA is back and the first game of the season did not disappoint.

The Toronto Raptors needed overtime to edge the New Orleans Pelicans 130-122 on their ring ceremony and banner night.

New Orleans' balanced scoring attack kept things close, as all 12 of their players that entered the game ended up in the scoring column. Their bench outscored the Raptors' second unit 57-23, but 34 points from both Pascal Siakam and Fred VanVleet was too much for the Pelicans to handle.

If you missed any of the action from tonight's contest, we had you covered with updates, highlights, stats and more from the Raptors' first win of the season.

Also, scroll all the way to the pregame section at the bottom if you're looking for content from the ring ceremony and raising of the championship banner!

Final: Raptors 130, Pelicans 122

Game Preview | Box Score | Play-by-play

The Raptors close things out to grind out a win on opening night! Pascal Siakam was amazing in his first contest as the premier guy with 34 points, 18 rebounds and five assists. His help came from a monster night from Fred VanVleet, who notched a career-high 34 points to go with a team-high seven assists and five rebounds. Kyle Lowry's 22 points, six assists, five rebounds and two steals played a key role in the victory as well.

For the Pelicans, it was a balanced scoring attack that kept things close. Brandon Ingram finished with a team-high 22 points while Josh Hart had a double-double of 15 points and 10 rebounds. J.J. Redick was solid in 28 minutes of playing time with 16 points on 4-for-6 shooting from 3-point land.


And now it's the captain Kyle Lowry who buries the dagger! His 3-pointer gives the Raptors a 130-122 lead under a minute to go.

Fred VanVleet! He knocks down a massive 3-pointer to give the Raptors a 127-122 lead with 1:27 remaining in the game. He's up to a career-high 34 points on the night.


End of regulation: Raptors 117, Pelicans 117

Norman Powell can't get the 3-pointer to go with the game on the line – we're headed to overtime!

Fred VanVleet responded with a 3-ball of his own to tie things back up at 115! After trading scores, we're all tied at 117 with 29 seconds remaining. The Pelicans take a timeout with possession. Worth noting – Pascal Siakam has fouled out of the contest after an offensive foul drawn by J.J. Redick.

Josh Hart with another  big shot. He buries a 3-pointer to give the Pelicans a 115-112 lead with 1:28 left in the game. Hart has 15 points on 3-for-4 shooting from beyond the arc.


Pascal Siakam is taking over down the stretch. He now has 34 points, 18 rebounds and five assists as he ties the game at 110 with 2:14 remaining in the game.


New Orleans uses a 10-0 run to take a 109-103 lead with 4:14 to play. Both Kyle Lowry and Marc Gasol received technical fouls during this stretch. Josh Hart is having a great game off the bench with a double-double of 12 points and 10 rebounds with two 3-pointers.


The Pelicans continued their run from the third quarter but the Raptors answered right back to take a 100-99 lead with 6:45 remaining in the game. Pascal Siakam's corner 3-ball allowed Toronto to retake the lead as he's having a solid outing in his first contest as the team's go-to guy – he's up to 26 points, 14 rebounds and five assists.


End of third quarter: Raptors 88, Pelicans 86

Nicolo Melli has yet to miss a shot in his NBA career – the rookie buries another 3-pointer and has 12 points on a perfect 4-for-4 shooting from long range. He's helped the Pelicans cut their deficit to just two points as Toronto leads 88-86 heading into the final frame.


Toronto has expanded upon their lead, up 84-78 with 2:39 remaining in the third. Fred VanVleet continues to torch the Pelicans with 24 points, five assists and four rebounds. OG Anunoby also threw down this strong and-1 dunk to spark the Raptors!


The Raptors have retaken the lead at 71-70 with three minutes into the third quarter. Pascal Siakam has notched a double-double with 18 points and 10 rebounds as he posted up J.J. Redick for an easy layup to force a Pelicans timeout. Fred VanVleet didn't let halftime cool him off, knocking down his first 3-point attempt of the second half to give him a team-high 20 points.

Halftime: Pelicans 61, Raptors 56

In a first half of runs, the Pelicans take a five-point lead into the break.

Brandon Ingram is up to 12 points as the team's leading scorer with J.J. Redick lighting it up from the perimeter with 11 points on 3-for-4 shooting. 11 of the 12 players to touch the floor for New Orleans have scored.

Pascal Siakam leads the Raptors with 16 points, nine rebounds and two assists. He's done the majority of his damage from the free throw line, going 8-for-8. Fred VanVleet is up to 15 points shooting 5-for-8 from the field to go with a team-high four assists. As a team, Toronto is shooting just 38.3% from the field and 26.7% from 3-point land and also has 12 turnovers.


Now it's a 13-5 run for the Raptors to cut into the Pelicans' lead. New Orleans is up 49-46 with 3:41 to go in the half. Fred VanVleet is keeping Toronto alive with a team-high 15 points. Pascal Siakam nearly has a double-double with 12 points and eight rebounds. The Pelicans are still using a team effort with 10 different players scoring the ball so far.


Pelicans rookie Nicolo Melli has checked in red hot off the bench. He's 3-for-3 from 3-point land to extend New Orleans' lead to 44-33 forcing a Raptors timeout early in the second quarter.


End of first quarter: Pelicans 30, Raptors 27

The Pelicans close the quarter strong to take a 30-27 lead. Its been a team effort for New Orleans who already has eight players in the points column. Derrick Favors leads the team with six points and four rebounds.

For the Raptors, it's Kyle Lowry and Fred VanVleet's eight points apiece that paces the team.


The Raptors run is now up to 21-4 as they lead 25-22 with 2:44 in the quarter. The stoppage in play comes from the first coach's challenge in NBA history by Nick Nurse!

The Raptors use a 12-2 run to take their first lead of the season at 20-19 with 4:16 left in the frame. Great ball movement has led to better, more open shots.


The Pelicans get out to a hot start to take a 13-4 lead three minutes into the contest forcing Raptors head coach Nick Nurse to take a timeout. New Orleans has started the game 3-for-4 from 3-point land.


Pregame

Here they are – the championship rings! And a hype video to go with them.



The on-court display to welcome the defending champions was goosebump-worthy.


The Pelicans will start Lonzo Ball, Jrue Holiday, JJ Redick, Brandon Ingram and Derrick Favors.


The Raptors will start Kyle Lowry, Fred VanVleet, OG Anunoby, Pascal Siakam and Marc Gasol.


North Philly's finest showing love to both "The North" and North Philly with his gameday kicks.


The shirts are all lined up for opening night!


Author(s)
Kyle Irving Photo
Kyle Irving

Kyle Irving is an NBA content producer for The Sporting News.