The New Orleans Pelicans (23 - 21) defeated the Dallas Mavericks (30 - 15) 109 - 106 on Sunday at the Smoothie King Center in New Orleans. Fighting to get back into the playoff hunt in the stacked Western Conference, the Pelicans have started to hit their stride, notching their third straight victory in a row. They used their superior shooting in this game, going 51 percent from the field and 47 percent from the three - point line, while the Mavericks went 48 percent from the floor and just 38 percent from beyond the arc. The Pelicans saw huge days from both Anthony Davis and Tyreke Evans. Davis finished with 28 points (8 - 18 FG, 12 - 14 FT), 10 rebounds and five steals, notching his third double - double over his last four games. He's currently having a very strong stretch of games, averaging 28 points and 10 rebounds over his last five. Ever since taking over for Jrue Holiday as the starting point guard, Evans has been very impressive. On Sunday he recorded 24 points (11 - 19 FG, 1 - 3 3Pt, 1 - 1 FT) and 12 assists, giving him his sixth double - double of the year. Over his last five games Evans has averaged 22 points, helping to take the pressure off of Davis, who is the biggest scoring threat on their roster. The Pelicans also had some strong contributions off thier bench. Ryan Anderson went 6 - for - 10 from the field and 2 - for - 3 from the three - point line to score 18 points, while also adding five rebounds. Quincy Pondexter had the other solid performance off the bench, recording 14 points (4 - 10 FG, 2 - 6 3Pt, 4 - 6 FT) and five rebounds in 28 minutes. The Mavericks were led by the duo of Dirk Nowitzki and Monta Ellis. Ellis went 16 - for - 27 from the field and 4 - for - 9 from the three - point line to record a game - high of 36 points, while also addding five rebounds. He came just shy of matching a season - high in points, but boosted his season scoring average to 20 points per game. Nowitzki on the other hand finished with 24 points (8 - 19 FG, 2 - 8 3Pt, 6 - 8 FT) and six rebounds. It was his second straight night with 23 points, as he's a combined 18 - of - 34 from the field over the last two games. Rajon Rondo had solid showing Sunday, going 7 - for - 10 from the field and 2 - for - 2 from beyond the arc to score 17 points. He also came just shy of a double - double with nine rebounds to go along with it. It was one of his better games for the Mavericks this season, but it was n't enough to get them the victory. Coming off the bench, Dwight Powell added 10 points and six assists. The Pelicans' next game will be at home against the Philadelphia 76ers on Monday, while the Mavericks will be at home against the Memphis Grizzlies on Tuesday.
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