Pelicans Lose Late Lead Again In 100-95 Road Loss To Rockets

The New Orleans Pelicans lost hold of a six-point lead with just over four minutes left over the Houston Rockets on Wednesday night, leading them to lose 100-95 at the Toyota Center in Houston.

Pelicans Lose Late Lead Again In 100-95 Road Loss To Rockets

The Pelicans committed 23 turnovers, which led to 24 points for the Rockets. New Orleans started the game off strong, with seven assists on their first 10 made shots. In the fourth quarter, the Pelicans turned the ball over five times and made only 6 of 23 shots. Point guard Norris Cole had a big first half with 18 points, but was held to three points for the remainder of the game. Cole led the Pelicans with 21 points and eight assists.

The Pelicans’ defense also started out strong: the Rockets missed their first 15 scoring attempts from 3-point range and shot 2-20 in the first half before ending the game making only 3-of-34. However, New Orleans also allowed 58 points in the first half.

The Rockets closed out the game on a 16-5 run after trailing 90-84. James Harden also scored a game-high 39 points for the Rockets. He also led Houston with 12 rebounds and seven assists.

“No matter how poorly we were shooting, we work on that every single day,” Harden said regarding the Rockets’ mediocre shooting during the game. “Having confidence in my teammates to knock down shots is important.”

“Three out of 34, that’s rarely going to happen,” Harden later added. “If we knocked down more of those, it would’ve been a different ballgame.”

Returning from a one-game absence after a right big toe sprain kept him out of the Pelicans’ loss in Minnesota on Saturday, star New Orleans center and power forward Anthony Davis had his own night of frustration. Davis was held to 12 on 5-of-13 shooting in 39 minutes.

The Pelicans (23-36) will next host the San Antonio Spurs on Thursday, while the Rockets (30-31) will visit the Chicago Bulls on Saturday.

The Rockets are currently ranked 8th in the Western Conference, while the Pelicans are ranked 12th.

Caption: HOUSTON, TX – JANUARY 30: Garrett Temple #17 of the Washington Wizards defends against James Harden #13 of the Houston Rockets during their game at the Toyota Center on January 30, 2016 in Houston, Texas.