DENVER – Anthony Davis left after the first quarter with an illness only to return in the fourth and finish with 27 points, lifting the New Orleans Pelicans to a 130-125 win over the Denver Nuggets on Sunday night.
Davis had a dominating first quarter, scoring 19 points before leaving after feeling sick. He returned early in the fourth and sparked the Pelicans, who ended a five-game road swing with a 2-3 mark. They’re now 3-13 on the road this season.
New Orleans was trailing 106-104 when Davis returned to the court with 8:20 remaining. The Pelicans went on a 19-10 run to wrap up the win.
The Pelicans had six players finish in double figures, including 21 points apiece from Tyreke Evans and Jrue Holiday.
Reserve Will Barton had a career-high 32 points for the Nuggets. He also had 10 rebounds.
Denver was up 80-77 in the third quarter when hot-shooting Danilo Gallinari turned his left ankle after stepping on the foot of Ryan Anderson. The Pelicans took advantage by going on a 14-2 run to grab control in a back-and-forth game.
Two nights ago in a loss at Phoenix, New Orleans coach Alvin Gentry was agitated with his team’s lackluster play, saying, “terrible, terrible, bad effort, not playing hard, not giving a damn.”
Their offense was more efficient, shooting 56.4 percent. The Pelicans bottled up the Nuggets down the stretch, too.
The Nuggets scored a season-high 74 points in the first half – a total they had for an entire game on Dec. 8 against Orlando.
Once again, the Nuggets caught a break by facing Davis at less than full health. The dominating forward/center had a monster first quarter in which he scored 19 of his team’s 36 points. It was the highest scoring quarter of his NBA career, according to STATS. Davis’ previous best was 17 on two occasions, most recently in the fourth quarter November 6 against Atlanta.
Late in the first quarter, Davis took a seat on the bench with a towel draped over his head. He got sick on his way to the locker room, with the team saying his return was questionable with an illness.
When Denver played in New Orleans on Nov. 17, Davis hurt his shoulder early in the game and scored no points as the Nuggets cruised to a 115-98 win.
