Pelicans 115, Trail Blazers 89
NEW ORLEANS -- Forward Anthony Davis scored 28 points and grabbed 12 rebounds -- his 16th double-double of the season -- and the New Orleans Pelicans snapped a seven-game losing streak to the Portland Trail Blazers with a 115-89 victory Wednesday night at the Smoothie King Center
The Pelicans (9-19) sent the reeling Blazers (11-20) to their fifth loss on a five-game road trip. Portland had not gone winless on a road trip of at least five games since an 0-5 trip in 1974.
New Orleans guard Tyreke Evans added 24 points and nine assists, and guard Jrue Holiday had 19 points and five assists in 21 minutes off the bench.
Playing without All-Star point guard Damian Lillard for the second consecutive game, Portland struggled to score. Guard CJ McCollum led the Blazers with 19 points, but the visitors could not overcome a 13-point second quarter and 10 first-half turnovers.
The Pelicans had a season-best defensive performance, giving up their fewest points in a game this season (their previous low allowed was 90 to the San Antonio Spurs) and holding the Blazers to 34.7 percent shooting (33 of 95).
New Orleans led by as many as 25 points, 66-41, when Evans hit a pair of free throws with 8:11 left in the third quarter. The Blazers closed the period with a 24-14 run to cut the deficit to 80-65 after three.
The Pelicans used a 17-2 run to close out the second quarter and take a 53-36 halftime lead. New Orleans built its margin on the defensive end, holding Portland to 5-of-26 shooting (19.2 percent) from the field in a 13-point second quarter.
The 13 points allowed by the Pelicans in the second quarter represented a season low. Portland scored just four points on its first 15 possessions of the quarter and only two points on its final 10 possessions.
The Pelicans took advantage of 10 Portland turnovers in the first half, scoring 19 points. The Blazers, meanwhile, failed to score off six New Orleans turnovers.
Evans scored 12 first-half points for the Pelicans, and he sparked the 17-2 spurt with a driving layup in which he sliced through three Portland defenders and then followed up with a half-court steal and layup for 45-36 lead.
McCollum started at point guard for the Blazers despite two sore ankles, but he was just 3-for-10 from the field and committed three turnovers before halftime. He finished 8-for-21 with seven assists and the three giveaways.
NOTES: The Pelicans are trying to dig themselves out of a 1-11 start and have played close to .500 in the last month. "There's a lot of good, positive things we can look at, but that being said, moving forward, we're going to have to start winning games if we're going to get into the playoffs," Pelicans coach Alvin Gentry said. ... New Orleans has struggled on the defensive end, allowing a league-worst 108.2 points per game before Wednesday. ... The Blazers played without All-Star PG Damian Lillard, who missed only the second game of his three-year NBA career with plantar fasciitis in his left foot. Lillard hopes to return Saturday against the Cavaliers. Lillard had played in 275 consecutive games before the injury. ... After missing one game because of sprained left and right ankles, CJ McCollum started at point guard for the Blazers.