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Evans, Davis lead Pelicans over Grizzlies

Mar 8, 2015 - 6:13 AM New Orleans, LA (SportsNetwork.com) - The New Orleans Pelicans used a big third quarter on their way to a 95-89 win over the Memphis Grizzlies on Saturday.

Trailing by 12 at halftime, the Pelicans outscored Memphis 33-17 in the third period and held on to win for the seventh time in their last nine games.

Tyreke Evans led all scorers with 26 points, and Anthony Davis added 23 points, 10 rebounds and five blocks.

New Orleans limited Memphis' frontcourt duo of Marc Gasol and Zach Randolph to 15 points and nine rebounds as the Grizzlies lost their two-game winning streak. Jeff Green paced Memphis with 20 points, and Mike Conley scored 17.

"We defended well," said Davis. "We tried to create problems for Zach and Marc."

After shooting just 39.5 percent and committing 13 turnovers in the first half, the Pelicans finally broke through out of the break. They scored the first seven points of the half and eventually tied the game at 57 on Eric Gordon's three-point play with 5:34 to play in the period. On the next possession, Gordon hit a 3 to give New Orleans its first lead since the opening minutes in the game.

That lead was five when the Grizzlies finally got their first field goal in the quarter as Gasol hit a jumper with 3:42 to go in the third. A 6-0 Memphis run in the final two minutes tied the game, but Davis hit two shots in the last 34 seconds to give the Pelicans a 71-67 lead after three.

The Grizzlies took the lead in the fourth quarter on Beno Udrih's jumper that capped a 7-0 run, but it was brief. At the other end, Alexis Ajinca answered with a bucket, and the Pelicans would not lose that lead again.

Conley's 3 with 2:12 remaining brought Grizzlies within one, but Gordon came up big again at the other end with a triple of his own. Memphis would not hit a shot from the floor again.

Memphis' tough defense boosted the Grizzlies to a 25-18 lead after one. The Pelicans shot 44.4 percent and also committed nine turnovers leading to four Memphis points.

New Orleans cut down on its turnovers in the second quarter but shot a dismal 33.3 percent. The Grizzlies led by as many as 18 when Green hit back-to-back layups at the midpoint of the period, but the lead was cut to 50-38 at the break.

Game Notes

New Orleans improved to 8-7 in the second half of back-to-back sets while Memphis fell to 9-5 ... Gordon finished with 16 points for the Pelicans, and Norris Cole scored 12 ... Memphis' Nick Calathes had nine points and seven assists off the bench.