Pelicans 105, Hawks 100

NEW ORLEANS — Forward Anthony Davis scored a game-high 27 points, including 10 in the final 3:35, and reserve guard Anthony Morrow added nine fourth-quarter points to lift the New Orleans Pelicans to a 105-100 victory over the Atlanta Hawks on Wednesday night at the New Orleans Arena.

In winning for only the fifth time in 26 games when trailing after three quarters, the Pelicans (21-27) overcame torrid perimeter shooting by the Hawks, who made 14 3-pointers in 30 attempts.

The Pelicans broke open an 85-85 tie with a 10-3 run in a 3:35 span of the final quarter, with Davis accounting for six points, to take a 98-88 lead. Atlanta scored seven consecutive points to cut it to 98-95, but guard Brian Roberts, who had 19 points, hit a runner in the lane to ice the game with 20.5 seconds left.

The Hawks (25-23) were led by forwards Paul Millsap with 26 points and DeMarre Carroll with 22.

Millsap hit back-to-back open 3-pointers from the top of the key, putting Atlanta up 63-58 midway through the third quarter. By the time Millsap made another 3-pointer, the Hawks had hit nine consecutive attempts from long range and led 66-62.

After New Orleans regained the lead, 76-75, on a 3-pointer by guard Anthony Morrow, Atlanta guard Lou Williams responded with a 3-pointer of his own. When forward Mike Scott nailed another long-range jumper, the Hawks were 13 of 24 from long distance and led 83-76.

But the Pelicans responded with nine consecutive points — six by Davis and three by Morrow — to regain the lead 85-83 with 5:22 left.

The Hawks trailed 43-35 before going on a 10-0 in a 1:50 span of the second quarter to take a 45-43 lead. Scott came off the bench to hit a 3-pointer from the left corner and then made two foul shots, and he finished the second quarter with eight points as Atlanta took a 51-47 halftime lead.

The Hawks missed their first four shots from behind the arc but then made 5 of 8 to close the half. Carroll had two 3-pointers and led the Hawks with 12 first-half points. Atlanta was superb at moving the ball, with 14 assists on 19 made baskets. Guard Jeff Teague had six assists in the half.

Davis rebounded from an abysmal 5 of 21 performance against San Antonio on Monday night by scoring 10 points and grabbing seven rebounds in the first half. Davis made 4 of 5 from the field, and guard Eric Gordon added nine.

NOTES: The Pelicans signed 6-foot-9 F Luke Babbitt, who played 13 games in Russia this year with Nizhny Novgorod, where he averaged 13.3 points and 3.7 rebounds. “He’s a guy who can shoot the ball,” said Pelicans coach Monty Williams. “He has the ability to play the 3, and maybe in a pinch he could play the 4 to stretch the floor. He’s a serious kid who really loves to work.” … New Orleans owns the rights to PG Pierre Jackson, who set a D-League scoring record with 58 points on Tuesday night. While Williams said there are no plans to bring him up, “when a guy drops 50-something points, it does get your interest a little bit.” … Atlanta coach Mike Budenholzer said F Paul Millsap (17.5 ppg and 8.3 rpg) deserves his All-Star selection. “We really encouraged him to expand his range and shoot 3s,” Budenholzer said. “He’s just a high IQ guy.”