Davis Hurt In Pregame, Pelicans Then Lose To T-Wolves

When the New Orleans Pelicans announced 30 minutes before tipoff that All-Star Anthony Davis wouldn't play after injuring his foot in pregame warmups, the odds were beginning to swing in favor of the Minnesota Timberwolves.

Several hours later, the Pelicans had fallen to the T-Wolves 112-110.

New Orleans looked like they'd escape with a win despite Davis' absence. With strong performances from Ryan Anderson (31 points, 14 rebounds) and a returning Eric Gordon (31 points), the Pelicans led by 10 in the 4th quarter.

However, turnovers and only 10 healthy players doomed a fatigued Pelicans squad in the 4th quarter, as the T-Wolves took a 2 point lead with less than 5 seconds to play.

"We had some good shots at it," said New Orleans head coach Alvin Gentry. "We just can't turn the ball over. That really is a back breaker for us."

15 turnovers for the Pels didn't help, but the lack of manpower hurt more.

Jrue Holiday scored 20 of the Pelicans bench, but outside of he, Anderson and Gordon, no other Pelican reached double-figures.

Veteran big man Kendrick Perkins had to play 20 minutes, more than double his season average.

It marked the 7th game Davis missed this season for New Orleans. The Pelicans have lost 6 of those 7.

Will he return for the Pels next game versus on Wednesday at Houston?

"I don't know. I'm not sure," said Gentry. "We should know in the next couple of days."

With the loss, New Orleans falls to 23-35.