After a disappointing loss last week, the Saints have a much more difficult opponent in Week 13.

Team Stats (Pelicans at Warriors) Final Score: 96-104 Rebounds: 50-47 Assists: 16-28 Blocks: 2-3 Steals: 7-5 Turnovers: 13-9 Stat Leaders Scoring Leaders: Zion Williamson, 25; Jimmy Butler, 24 Rebound Leaders: Yves Missi, 10; Gary Payton II, 11 Assist Leaders: Zion Williamson, Jose Alvarado, 4; Jimmy Butler, 10 My Player of the Game: Zion Williamson Chrissy's Key Takeaways * The most interesting part of this game were announcers Joel Myers and Antonio Daniels . * The Pelicans are 3-17 on the season and play at the Los Angeles Lakers on Sunday. The Pels will be without at least Herb Jones (calf) and Zion Williamson (load management). Jordan Poole is almost ready to be back but it's not decided yet if he will be back for this game. * If New Orleans would have made seven of their nine missed free throws, they would have tied with the Warriors at the end of regulation. Follow @TheKneaux on X, and follow me there too, @SportsChrissy.

Team Stats (Grizzlies at Pelicans) Final Score: 133-128 (OT)) Rebounds: 49-40 Assists: 38-34 Blocks: 8-9 Steals: 9-10 Turnovers: 16-14 Stat Leaders Scoring Leaders: Jaren Jackson, 27; Jose Alvarado, 24 Rebound Leaders: Zach Edey, 15; Saddiq Bey, 10 Assist Leaders: Vince Williams Jr., 17; Derik Queen, 9 My Player of the Game: Jose Alvarado Chrissy's Key Takeaways * The Pelicans played with so much energy and passion that losing this game in overtime hurt because the team played hard and deserved it. * New Orleans closed the first quarter on a 30-7 run to take a 39-25 lead entering the second quarter. The Pelicans led 68-53 at halftime. * Zion hit the game-tying basket to force the game into overtime, but then the Grizzles. * Stagnant offense was a problem for the Pelicans who scored only nine points in the final six minutes of regulation and just six in overtime. * The Pelicans are 3-16 on the season. Follow @TheKneaux on X, and follow me there too, @SportsChrissy.

Rivalry week is finally here in the college football world, and in this beloved state, we have our very own: The Battle on the Bayou. The ULM Warhawks are set to face off against the Louisiana Ragin' Cajuns in Lafayette at 2pm Saturday to wrap up the regular season. ULM started off this season on somewhat of a high note, going 3-1 with their only loss to a 21st-ranked Alabama team who shut them out 73-0. Then their downfall started, losing seven straight games and eliminating themselves from any postseason hopes, and that's where they sit coming into this week. This game does not hold much significance for the Warhawks, other than trying to "reignite" what has been a one-sided rivalry. ULM has only won 2 of the last 10 games vs Louisiana, and only 5 of the last 20 games. Louisiana comes into this game with bowl eligibility on the line. "Louisiana" and "bowl eligibility" are two phrases that just a few weeks ago when the Cajuns were 2-6 that just simply didn't go together. The Cajuns have had a rough season riddled with injuries. From losing QB Walker Howard in the season opener to top WR Shelton Sampson Jr. battling injuries until midseason, and an offensive line devastated by nine season-ending injuries, this team has had to "scratch and claw" their way out of desperate situations every game. However, after a 2-6 start with one more loss eliminating them from any bowl hopes, Louisiana now rides a 3-game winning streak coming into this game, covering the spread in all three games which they were underdogs in. It is something that although seemed so far-stretched for the fan base, the team kept believing. QB Lunch Winfield and Shelton Sampson Jr., both of whom have been on the forefront of the team's recent success, always knew that they had it in them, it was just a matter of when it would click for them and the entire team. Here are the keys to a Cajuns victory and what we can expect on Saturday, as well as my predictions: Offense needs to do what it has done best the last 3 weeks - start strong! Through the first eight games of the season, the Cajuns only averaged 13 points in the first half of those games. But over the last three games (at South Alabama, vs Texas State, at Arkansas State), this offense averaged 28 points in the first half of those games. Ultimately, that early success has helped them win those 3 games, as their second half offense has not been as strong (average 8 points per game). Now granted, ULM’s offense is not as powerful as Texas State or South Alabama (Warhawks offense produces the least yards of any opponent UL has faced this season), and do a very poor job at putting up points (average 16 points per game). But given the rivalry situation (6 of the last 10 matchups between the two ended in a one-score game), this won’t be the time for the Cajuns to ease up. Expect the Cajuns to start off firing on all cylinders on offense to give them a cushion going into the halftime break. Prediction: Lunch Winfield will have 130 yards passing with a touchdown pass, as well as 50 yards rushing with a touchdown run in the first half of the game. ULM’s defense does a great job at getting to the QB (24 sacks on the season, led by CB D’Arco Perkins-McAllister and NT Dylan Howell with 4 each). With UL’s offensive line being shaky due to injuries and a depleted depth chart, I expect Lunch to move outside the pocket a lot. That being said, I don’t think we’ll see much of a great running game by the Cajuns, so they will have to rely much on Lunch’s dual-threat capabilities. This is a momentum-building game for UL’s defense…if they can slow down the run This is a defense that has struggled a lot this season, whether Cajuns fans want to believe it or not. UL has allowed 188 yards per game on the ground this season, and 255 yards through the air against Sun Belt teams, both of which are among the worst in the country. Even in their last three games, defense has been shaky at times. Against Texas State a couple weeks ago, they allowed 366 yards passing, 168 yards rushing, and 8 plays of 20+ yards, 5 of which resulted in touchdowns. There was improvement against Arkansas State last week even when many Cajuns defensive players were out to suspensions, limiting them to just 3 plays of 20+ yards and under 140 yards rushing. With ULM coming in with a bottom-10 passing game, this should help the Cajuns build some confidence going into their bowl game should they win this game. However, ULM this season is a run-heavy team led by Braylon McReynolds and Zach Palmer-Smith, each with over 500 yards rushing. This could spell trouble for a UL defense that still struggles at slowing down the run. Prediction: ULM will be held to under 170 yards passing and under 150 yards rushing. UL’s run defense has been improving but very slowly. With bowl game hopes on the line, I think this team finally puts all the pieces together to slow down a run-heavy offense, forcing Armenta to have to throw more in dire need. Luckily, with the defense being pretty healthy coming into this game, I can see ULM being held to under 320 yards and very limited scoring opportunities. Final Prediction: Even though this is a rivalry game that usually ends up being close, UL should win this game pretty handily. Although their record may say otherwise, this is a pretty good football team with an offense that can be explosive. As long as the defense can mesh together against a Warhawk offense that simply does not a good job moving the ball and scoring, I think this could end up being a blowout in favor of the Cajuns. Coach Des and the players have been very vocal about how much it’ll mean to them if they get the opportunity to play a 13th game, and they will work hard to earn that opportunity on Saturday. Give me UL to beat ULM 34-17, finishing 6-6 and earning bowl eligibility for an 8th straight season.

Team Stats (Bulls at Pelicans) Final Score: 130-143 Rebounds: 33-55 Assists: 29-28 Blocks: 3-5 Steals: 3-13 Turnovers: 17-10 Stat Leaders Scoring Leaders: Ayo Dosunmu, 28; Zion Williamson, 29 Rebound Leaders: Josh Giddey, 7; Yves Missi, 13 Assist Leaders: Tre Jones, 11; Jose Alvarado, 8 My Player of the Game: Zion Williamson Chrissy's Key Takeaways * This was the best first half of basketball that the Pelicans have played all season, and it seemed actually possible that the team would get their third win of the season. * James Borrego did something interesting to start the second half -- he started Jose Alvarado and Yves Missi instead of Jeremiah Fears and Derik Queen. It was great to see, not because Fears or Queen had done anything wrong, but because Jose and Missi had the hot hands. Play who is working for you. * You know who is so important but no one talks about him? Saddiq Bey. He consistently puts up numbers and works hard. Tonight he had his second night of a double-double. * Micah Peavy had a heck of a game. Zion was solid all night long. Jose was a huge factor. Trey shot the ball well. The Pelicans were without Jordan Poole, Karlo, and Jordan Hawkins and still looked like a very good team. * The Pelicans played with pace tonight and it made a huge difference in everything. This is how the team should be playing every night. * Tonight might have been the awakening we've been waiting for with this team. Follow @TheKneaux on X, and follow me there too, @SportsChrissy.

New Orleans Saints 10 - 24 Atlanta Falcons This game is up there for the most miserable performance to watch by the team this season. The worst part? The offense didn’t play particularly poorly, but Kellen Moore repeatedly made immeasurably bad decisions. Due to this, I won’t be diving into the performances of the offense or the defense, but the two people who are most responsible for this loss: Kellen Moore and Blake Grupe (which also happens to fall on Kellen Moore). Kellen Moore (Dennis Allen, but “Offensive-Minded”) When Kellen Moore officially became the Saints head coach, I honestly wasn’t happy or sad; I was relatively neutral. I say this because I believed Kellen Moore was an extremely vanilla head coach, but that he at least seemed competent as a playcaller. I also felt that any head coach who came here would struggle to succeed with the current state of the roster. Now, after I have watched Kellen Moore struggle and fail over and over again to make good decisions 11 games into the season, I am completely out on bringing him back again. I now have 18 tweets since the season started questioning Kellen Moore, whether it be regarding his demeanor, game management, or playcalling. He has had multiple instances where he doesn’t make up his mind whether or not he wants to call time-outs or let the clock run to the end of the half, and he has also made terrible decisions when challenging calls on the field. One of those things showed up again today, with Kellen Moore failing to challenge an iffy spot after Dante Pettis was just short of a first down, essentially ending the game. To me, it is a no-brainer to challenge that spot, as if it’s overturned, you still have the ball, save your three timeouts, and are near midfield. In Kellen Moore’s mind, I guess he was thinking that the defense could get a stop, which they did, and they’d still have a shot at scoring 14 points, after scoring only three through three quarters. Don’t even get me started on Kellen Moore’s playcalling… Moore struggles to call high-quality plays once the Saints cross into opposing teams’ territory. He has struggled with this all season, with the Saints currently at a 38.5% redzone conversion rate (touchdowns only). This lands them last in the league, over 5.5% below the Texans, and makes them the only team below the 40% mark. This also showed up again in this matchup, as the Saints went to the red zone three times and could not score one touchdown. Two of those trips, they got stopped at the one-yard line, both times coming up short with Taysom Hill, NOT their rookie QB Tyler Shough, who you might think would be important to give reps down there. There was a glimmer of hope for Devin Neal on one drive, who single-handedly led the team from their own 25 to the Falcons’ 45, but he didn’t touch the ball again afterwards. This drive ended with a Taysom Hill shotgun rollout pass, with only one possible option to pass to. That is malpractice. Finally, Kellen Moore does not possess the mentality or character to be a head coach of an NFL team; he is simply an offensive-minded coach, akin to Dennis Allen. He simply stands on the sideline, always straight-faced, and doesn’t ever seem to try to light fire under his players’ asses. Anytime something goes wrong, the team loses, players make mistakes, etc. I feel like Kelen Moore could show much more passion on the sidelines than he does. Would this definitely change the Saints season or their future outlook right now? Possibly, and honestly probably not. However, it does in my eyes as someone who has played football through the D3 college level, matter in terms of winning over a locker room. Level-headed coaches can come off as not caring, or as someone who will be in over their head when the going gets tough, and I think we can see that possibly happening this season. One final point, the Saints just went to Carolina, won, and had a whole bye week to prepare for this Falcons team. Within that bye week, Kellen Moore said the focus was to “self-scout”. The team clearly failed in that department, as they once again started slow and failed to score 20 offensive points. All-in-all, the Saints team looks like it has a dud at the head coach position, which dampens any hopes I had of the team turning it around any time soon. Blake Grupe Blake Grupe should not have even been on the Saints roster for this game, as he was 17/23 on field goal attempts before this game. However, Kellen Moore believed in him, going against all NFL standards, and thought he could turn it around. Then, in another close game, Grupe misses two huge field goals from very makeable distances, with one also directly leading to three Falcons points. If Blake Grupe is not off the team after this game, or is not at least benched for Charlie Smythe or outside competition, Kellen Moore will absolutely get blasted by beat reporters and Saints fans. This game was one I was actually looking forward to after having to wait two full weeks since the game in Charlotte. I wasn’t just let down, but I was made to feel like I couldn’t have been more wrong about how I felt about the team after the Panthers game. Change is needed if the season continues this way, but I do at least feel like the team may have something in Tyler Shough. On to the Dolphins… Offensive MVP: NONE. Defensive MVP: NONE. (Shoutout to Demario Davis still balling though) Special Teams MVP: NONE.

Team Stats (Hawks at Pelicans) Final Score: 115-98 Rebounds: 42-48 Assists: 28-21 Blocks: 7-6 Steals: 6-5 Turnovers: 7-14 Stat Leaders Scoring Leaders: Kristaps Porziņģis, 30; Derik Queen, 20 Rebound Leaders: Jalen Johnson, 11; Derik Queen, Trey Murphy III, 9 Assist Leaders: Jalen Johnson, 9; Saddiq Bey, 5 My Player of the Game: Derik Queen Chrissy's Key Takeaways * Rookie Derik Queen continues to impress everyone with his play. He's smooth on the court, and watching him play with other rookies Jeremiah Fears and Micah Peavy make it look obvious that this is really the future of this franchise. * Saddiq Bey finished the game with 18 points, 11 rebounds, and 5 assists, which was also his first double double as a Pelican. * The Pelicans have lost nine games in a row and a re 2-15 on the season. Somehow we are worse than last year. Follow @TheKneaux on X, and follow me there too, @SportsChrissy.