Mavericks 107, Pelicans 98
DALLAS -- Despite the season being less than two weeks old, both Dallas Mavericks and New Orleans Pelicans took the floor Saturday night with a sense of desperation.
The Mavericks (3-3) avoided a winless opening homestand by pulling away in the final period to top the injury-ravaged Pelicans 107-98 at American Airlines Center.
Guard Deron Williams scored 19 points and forward Dirk Nowitzki added 18 for Dallas, which was in danger of falling to 0-3 at home for the first time in seven years before a game-deciding 17-5 run in the fourth quarter.
The Pelicans dropped to 0-6 and remain the last team in the Western Conference without a victory.
New Orleans only suited up nine players. In addition to the myriad injuries that have hit the club, starting point guard Jrue Holiday sat to rest on the second night of a back-to-back.
Power forward Anthony Davis followed a 40-point effort Friday with game-high 25 points against Dallas. Davis made 11-of-19 shots to go along with six rebounds, four assists and two blocks.
Shooting guard Eric Gordon and reserve forward Ryan Anderson each had 21 points for the Pelicans, who led for much of the third quarter and went into the fourth down just 72-70.
The Mavericks turned a 79-75 lead into an 86-70 advantage midway through the fourth. Nowitzki scored nine points in the first six minutes of the quarter.
Dallas shooting guard Wesley Person scored 13 points, and center Zaza Pachulia grabbed 14 rebounds.
Forward Dwight Powell (15 points and seven rebounds) and guard J.J. Barea (13 points) came up big off the bench for the Mavs.
The Mavericks and Pelicans finish off a home-and-home Tuesday in New Orleans.
Davis and Anderson combined for 27 points as New Orleans took a 48-42 lead into the locker room. The Pelicans finished the half with a flurry, as the Mavericks had more than a four-minute scoring drought.
New Orleans opened the game with an 8-0 lead before Dallas responded later in the quarter with an 11-0 run. Powell gave the Mavs a lift off the bench during the spurt.
Mavs small forward Chandler Parsons was back in the starting lineup, but only played in the first half after a one-game experiment of just playing in the second half. He scored six points.
NOTES: Pelicans C Kendrick Perkins is out 2-3 months with a pectoral injury. Perkins had moved into the starting lineup with the calf injury to C Omer Asik. New Orleans, with only nine available players, was also without G Jrue Holiday (leg), G Norris Cole (ankle), G Tyreke Evans (knee) and F Quincy Pondexter (calf). ... Dallas hasn't started 0-3 at home since losing its first four in 2008-09. ... The Mavericks won three of four from the Pelicans last season, led by G Monta Ellis' 24.8 points per game. Ellis signed with Indiana in the offseason. ... New Orleans last started 0-6 in 2004-05.