Davis, Pelicans hold off Rockets
NEW ORLEANS — Anthony Davis scored 27 points, DeMarcus Cousins had 15 points, 13 rebounds and 11 assists before injuring his left Achilles, and the New Orleans Pelicans survived a furious Houston rally for a 115-113 victory over the Rockets on Friday night.
A fourth straight victory and seventh victory in eight games coming against one of the NBA’s top teams should have been reason to celebrate, but there was a lot of concern about Cousins, who could not put any weight on his left foot as he was helped to the locker room with less than 15 seconds left. Team officials said an MRI will determine the severity of the injury.
Jrue Holiday scored 21 points and unconventionally sealed the victory by purposefully missing a free throw with 1.8 seconds left, causing time to run out as players fought for the rebound.
Darius Miller hit six 3-pointers, including one with 1:52 left to give the Pelicans a five-point lead, and finished with 20 points.
Chris Paul scored a season-high 38 points before fouling out in the final seconds and nearly led Houston back from a 21-point, third-quarter deficit. James Harden had 23 points and 11 assists, and Eric Gordon scored 27 points.
Ricky Rubio’s 3-pointer with 4 seconds remaining gave Utah a road victory over Toronto. Jonas Valanciunas had a season-high 28 points and 14 rebounds for the Raptors. Brandon Ingram scored 25 points, including eight in the final 3:18, and Los Angeles rallied late for a road victory over Chicago. Kemba Walker scored 29 points and made two key 3-pointers down the stretch that helped Charlotte beat Atlanta at home.
Police officers used a stun gun on Milwaukee Bucks rookie Sterling Brown and arrested the 22-year-old after a confrontation at a Walgreens parking lot. Police Sgt. Timothy Gauerke said officers contacted a man after seeing a vehicle parked across two handicapped parking spots while doing a business check about 2 a.m. Gauerke did not say what led to the officers’ use of force and it wasn’t immediately known whether Brown was cited for anything.