Pistons Fall To Pelicans, 105-94

AUBURN HILLS, Mich. (AP) - Anthony Davis had 27 points and 10 rebounds as the New Orleans Pelicans brought the Detroit Pistons back to earth with a 105-94 win Wednesday night.

The Pistons (14-25) came in having won of nine of 10, but were never competitive with New Orleans, which led by 20 with 3:15 to play.

The Pelicans (19-19) were missing Jrue Holliday (ankle), but easily picked up their second win in five games. Tyreke Evans added 18 points, nine assists and eight rebounds for the Pelicans, while Ryan Anderson came off the bench to score 17.

Brandon Jennings had 19 for the Pistons, while Greg Monroe had 16 points and eight rebounds and was the only other starter to reach double figures.

The Pelicans dominated the first half, with the exception of Detroit's 6-0 run to end the first quarter. New Orleans led 58-36 at the intermission, helped in a great part by a 36-point second period that saw them outrebound Detroit 14-2.

The Pistons only managed 10 rebounds in the first half to 24 for New Orleans, and had just one second-chance opportunity despite missing 13 of their 15 jumpers in the opening two quarters. Andre Drummond struggled for Detroit, scoring only two points in 17 minutes and seeing his team outscored by 21 points while he was on the floor.

New Orleans stayed in control in the third quarter, and even when they made mistakes, the Pistons couldn't capitalize. After one turnover, Kyle Singler led a Detroit fast break, only to pass the ball directly to New Orleans' Dante Cunningham. Singler didn't hustle back on defense, leading to an open 3-pointer for the Pelicans. A furious Stan Van Gundy yanked him from the game.

The Pistons scored the final seven points of the period to pull within 83-66, but never posed a serious threat in the fourth.

TIP-INS

PELICANS: Nate Wolters joined the Pelicans on a 10-day contract, but did not play as Monty Williams stayed with his rotation until the final 25 seconds. Wolters had several memorable duals down the street at Oakland University while attending North Dakota State, and ended his college career at the Palace in an NCAA Tournament loss to Michigan.

PISTONS: With Detroit playing its sixth game in nine nights, and both Spencer Dinwiddie and Gigi Datome in the D-League, it didn't take long for Van Gundy to empty his bench. Cartier Martin was the only player who hadn't gotten into the game by the end of the third, and he finished the game, but did not score.

NEXT UP:

Pistons: Visit the Pacers on Friday.