Pelicans 105, Mavericks 98
DALLAS -- Anthony Davis poured in a game-high 31 points and grabbed 14 rebounds to lead the struggling New Orleans Pelicans to a road victory, knocking off the Dallas Mavericks 105-98 Saturday night at American Airlines Center.
Most impressive for the Pelicans, who were just 3-15 on the road entering this game, was their poise at each end of the floor down the stretch after Dallas quickly rallied from a 12-point deficit to tie the game at 85-85 midway through the fourth quarter.
After Pelicans forward Ryan Anderson and guard Eric Gordon each delivered 3-pointers, Davis put home an alley-oop and Anderson canned four free throws to help extend the lead to 101-96 with 1:10 to go. Mavs forward Dirk Nowitzki swished a jumper to make it 101-98 with 29.8 seconds left.
The Pelicans then put the game into the hands of guard Jrue Holiday. New Orleans isolated him on the left side against Mavs guard J.J. Barea. Holiday lulled Barea with the dribble out by the 3-point arc and then made a burst for the basket, getting around Barea and scoring the decisive lay-up.
New Orleans (11-22) had lost three of its last four, and is now off until Wednesday when they again face the Mavs. Then, like now, Dallas will be on the back end of a back-to-back. Dallas (19-14) was blown out Friday night at Miami.
Holiday came off the bench and seems to be accepting that challenge with 20 points and six assists. Gordon and guard Norris Cole, who started, both had 16 points. Anderson added 16 off the bench.
Dallas had six players score in double figures, but shot just 43.4 percent from the floor. The Mavs were led by Nowitzki's 24 points. However, he was just eight-of-21 from the floor. Guard Wesley Matthews had 18 points and center Zaza Pachulia finished with 14 points.
The Pelicans led 48-47 after an evenly matched first half in which neither team led by more than seven points. New Orleans benefited from 14 fastbreak points compared to Dallas' six, which helped the Pelicans shoot 46.7 percent in the opening half.
NOTES: Mavericks PG Devin Harris missed Saturday's game with a back strain he suffered during Friday's loss at Miami. He will likely miss additional games, although coach Rick Carlisle said he does not believe the injury to be serious. ... PG Deron Williams came off the bench for the second time in two games since his return from a four-game absence due to a left hamstring strain. G J.J. Barea remained in the starting lineup. Dallas went 4-0 during Williams' absence. ... The Mavericks entered Saturday's game on a five-game home winning streak. ... Dallas gets two days off before starting a stretch of three games in four nights and four games in six nights starting Tuesday at home against Sacramento. ... Pelicans G Tyreke Evans sat out Saturday's game with knee tendinitis. G Norris Cole moved into the starting lineup. ... Pelicans star PF Anthony Davis said he hopes to have a similar impact on the Pelicans organization and the city of New Orleans as Dirk Nowitzki has had on the Mavericks and the city of Dallas: "I stayed (with the Pelicans) because I want to try to change this franchise around and bring championships here, sold-out arenas and have guys want to play (in New Orleans)," Davis said after Saturday's morning shootaround. "I think we're moving in that direction; it's just been a tough season for us. But I plan on staying here. I love the city of New Orleans. It's a place where I want to play and a place I want to be." ... The Pelicans return to New Orleans immediately after the game and then have a three-day break before playing Dallas again at home on Wednesday.