Pelicans 99, Rockets 90
Anthony Davis collected 30 points, 14 rebounds and five blocked shots to power New Orleans past host Houston.
Ryan Anderson and Jrue Holiday added 16 points apiece for the Pelicans, who scored 34 points in the fourth quarter. Dante Cunningham tallied 15 points off the bench while Holiday dished out 10 assists for New Orleans, which recorded 21 helpers on 38 made field goals.
James Harden led the way with 21 points to go along with seven rebounds and five assists for the Rockets, who could not overcome 38.4 percent shooting from the field. Dwight Howard contributed 17 points, 13 rebounds and three blocked shots while Trevor Ariza recorded four steals for Houston.
Anderson connected from beyond the arc and sank a pair of free throws to put the Pelicans in front 79-73. Anderson's jumper stretched the lead to 10 before the Rockets cut the deficit to six with 3:10 remaining but Holiday scored four straight points to put New Orleans ahead 91-81 and they rattled off eight points in the final 1:39 to preserve the win.
Davis hit five of his first six shots but the Pelicans trailed 22-21 after 12 minutes and they closed out the second quarter with a 13-4 run to take a 46-39 advantage into intermission. New Orleans led by as much as 10 in the third quarter before Troy Daniels knocked down two 3-pointers as part of a 10-3 run to put the Rockets on top 68-65 heading into the final frame.
GAME NOTEBOOK: The Pelicans have beaten the Rockets twice in a row after dropping seven of the previous eight matchups. … New Orleans SG Tyreke Evans was inactive due to a right knee contusion. … Houston finished 6-of-25 from 3-point range.