Pelicans 110, Timberwolves 88
Anthony Davis had 28 points, nine rebounds and five assists as host New Orleans knocked off Minnesota.
Omer Asik added 15 points on 7-of-9 shooting as the Pelicans remain 2 1/2 games behind Oklahoma City for the eighth and final playoff spot in the Western Conference. Eric Gordon added 12 points and seven assists and New Orleans shot 57.3 percent from the field and forced 21 turnovers while winning its second straight game.
Andrew Wiggins scored 20 points and Zach LaVine added 17 for the Timberwolves, who lost for the 10th time in 12 games. Adreian Payne contributed 14 points and 11 rebounds for Minnesota, which was again without point guard Ricky Rubio (ankle), shooting guard Kevin Martin (hamstring), power forward Kevin Garnett (knee) and center Nikola Pekovic (ankle).
New Orleans opened the fourth quarter with an 11-2 surge to boost a seven-point advantage into an 88-72 lead. Minnesota trailed by 13 after Wiggins’ basket with 5:03 remaining but Luke Babbitt answered with a 3-pointer and Dante Cunningham scored on a layup as the margin was back at 18 to all but seal it.
The Pelicans led 25-11 after the first quarter before Minnesota trimmed its deficit to two late in the second quarter, but New Orleans led 50-41 at the break. The Pelicans were 11-of-17 shooting in the third quarter and Gordon’s layup gave them a 14-point lead with 1:19 to play before the Timberwolves cut it to 77-70 entering the final stanza.
GAME NOTEBOOK: Pelicans C Alexis Ajinca had 10 points, eight rebounds, three blocked shots and two steals off the bench. … Timberwolves C Gorgui Dieng (facial contusion) was injured and didn’t return. … New Orleans had nine blocked shots with Davis having just one rejection.