Pelicans pound Pistons on boards, win 105-94

AUBURN HILLS, Mich. — No team has grabbed more offensive rebounds this season than the Detroit Pistons. When the New Orleans Pelicans took away their second chances Wednesday, it was no contest.

Thanks to an overwhelming rebounding performance, the Pelicans opened up a 22-point halftime lead and cruised to a 105-94 win at The Palace. New Orleans outrebounded Detroit 47-30 and held the Pistons to three offensive rebounds. Detroit was averaging an NBA-high 12.8 offensive rebounds per game.

“For us to be a plus-17 on the boards is really good for us,” Pelicans coach Monty Williams said. “It means guys are really locked into the game plan. If we lock into the game plan and execute it at a 70 or 80 percent clip, we can beat anybody.”

Power forward Anthony Davis, the NBA’s fourth-leading scorer, collected his 22nd double-double by pouring in 27 points and grabbing 10 rebounds. He added four blocks for the Pelicans (19-19).

His frontcourt partner, center Omer Asik, contributed eight points and 13 rebounds and, with Davis’ help, limited Pistons center Andre Drummond to two points and two rebounds in 22 minutes.

“That was definitely a task for us, to keep them off the offensive boards,” New Orleans guard Eric Gordon said. “They’re probably the most athletic, energetic bigs in the league and they go after it all the time. We knew we definitely needed to rebound against them.”

Pelicans guard Tyreke Evans supplied 18 points, eight rebounds and nine assists, forward Ryan Anderson tossed in 17 points and Gordon chipped in 12 points and five assists.

“We played the right way,” Williams said. “That’s the only way I can sum it up.”

Point guard Brandon Jennings led the Pistons (14-25), who had won nine of their last 10, with 19 points. Power forward Greg Monroe added 18 points, eight rebounds and five assists but saw his streak of games with double-doubles snapped at seven. Point guard D.J. Augustin chipped in 13 points.

“We didn’t do anything well,” Pistons coach Stan Van Gundy said. “We didn’t rebound. We didn’t protect the paint. Those are two big areas of emphasis.”

A lineup change might be necessary to correct those problems.

“I don’t know how much longer we will go with that lineup,” he said. “We’re having to dig out of holes every night. Those guys don’t bring a lot of energy to start the game.”

The Pelicans had four players in double figures by halftime and roared to a 58-36 lead, handing Detroit its biggest halftime deficit of the season.

They opened up that lead early in the second quarter behind the bench combination of Anderson and guard Jimmer Fredette. They combined for 17 points in the quarter, including eight by Fredette during a 19-2 outburst that gave the Pelicans a 43-24 lead.

“When we get out to our transition game, we’re really tough to stop,” Fredette said. “We need to continue to get out in transition and share the basketball. That’s a recipe for success for us.”

Detroit couldn’t make any headway until late in the third quarter, when it cut the deficit to 17, at 83-66. Davis scored 12 points in the quarter to prevent the Pistons from making a significant run.

Forward Quincy Pondexter, making his Pelicans debut after being acquired from Memphis, fired in two 3-pointers in the opening minute of the fourth quarter to nudge the lead up to 20. The Pistons could not mount a threat the rest of the way.

NOTES: New Orleans has won the last five meetings with Detroit. … Pelicans PG Jrue Holiday missed a game for the first time this season because of right ankle inflammation. Holiday, who played just 34 games last season because of a fractured tibia, is questionable to play the remainder of the team’s five-game trip. … Pistons PG Brandon Jennings, who averaged 26.5 points against the Pelicans last season, was fined $15,000 by the league on Wednesday for making an obscene gesture in Toronto during Detroit’s 114-111 win on Monday. … Pistons coach Stan Van Gundy expects Pelicans PF Anthony Davis to become a 3-point threat in the future. Davis is 0 of 7 on 3-point tries this season. “You look at his stroke and it’s pure,” Van Gundy said. “He’ll probably add that in the next couple of years.” … New Orleans had an 0-7 road record against Eastern Conference opponents. … Detroit was averaging 107.0 points on 48.2 percent shooting from the field over its previous 10 games before Wednesday.