Noel Makes Debut; Mavericks Defeat Pelicans 96-83
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DALLAS (AP) — Harrison Barnes scored 19 points and Dirk Nowitzki had 18 points and nine rebounds as the Dallas Mavericks ended a three-game losing streak by beating the New Orleans Pelicans 96-83 on Saturday night.
The Pelicans fell to 0-2 since trading for DeMarcus Cousins and pairing him with Anthony Davis.
Davis had 39 points and 14 rebounds but scored only 12 in the second half. Cousins finished with 12 points and 15 rebounds.
Seth Curry scored 10 of his 13 in the fourth quarter to help Dallas pull away. His 3-pointer with 4:49 to play gave the Mavericks an 84-72 lead, and the Pelicans never got closer than six after that.
Nerlens Noel made his Mavericks debut with nine points and 10 rebounds while playing steady defense against Davis and Cousins in the low post. Noel punctuated his performance with an uncontested dunk in the final 30 seconds off a stolen inbounds pass.
Noel's presence inside also helped free Nowitzki for outside jump shots, and the veteran forward delivered an 8-for-12 shooting performance.
With Cousins limited to 11 minutes in the first half because of foul trouble, Davis took over with 27 points and 10 rebounds. He scored New Orleans' final 13 points of the second quarter.
Jrue Holiday had 18 points for the Pelicans, but he committed a crucial mistake at the end of the third quarter, fouling Barnes on a desperation heave some 60 feet from the basket. Barnes hit all three free throws with 0.6 seconds left in the period for a 67-63 Dallas lead.
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