SOARING TO NEW HEIGHTS: Pelicans Blast Rockets, 111-83

Anthony Davis scored 7 points on 2-7 shooting in the game against Houston Friday night. What a recipe for disaster, right?

Wrong.

The Pelicans (17-16) thwarted the Rockets (22-10) in a game that was over by halftime, blasting Houston by a score of 111-83.

After playing what might have been their worst half of the season to start Thursday’s matchup against the Spurs, the Pelicans came out against the Rockets and played one of their best.

After both teams tried to set the record for most shots in the opening minute (combined 0-6), New Orleans took flight. Tyreke Evans was slithering through Houston’s 3rd ranked defense with ease, resulting in some quick points for himself and his teammates.

Evans finished the game 10-15 from the field with 21 points, 5 assists and 4 rebounds. His work off the ball has vastly improved, and the results continue to improve as well.

Jan 2, 2015; New Orleans, LA, USA; New Orleans Pelicans forward Tyreke Evans (1) shoots over Houston Rockets forward Joey Dorsey (8) and guard Corey Brewer (33) during the first quarter of a game at the Smoothie King Center. Mandatory Credit: Derick E. Hingle-USA TODAY Sports

Josh Smith also played a critical role in getting New Orleans going. That is no typo. Smith threw up three quick misses and fouled twice before leaving the game for the remainder of the half after only four minutes.

Unfortunately for the Pelicans, Donatas Moitejunas came in and quickly scored 8 points. Smith did return with Houston’s bench in the fourth, and was welcomed by a blocked shot from Jeff Withey and a technical foul.

Omer Asik’s struggles in Houston were documented quite thoroughly during his two year tenure. Tonight, Asik was clearly looking for revenge. He made two slick passes from the top of the key, and did not shy away from battling with Dwight Howard in the post. As well as he was playing, his highlight of the game (and possibly the season) came late in the second quarter.

Asik was being closely guarded by Howard at the elbow, when Asik decided to shun his normal reset-the-offense pass and instead bulldoze toward the rim for a monster jam. The bench loved it, the crowd loved it (heck, even I loved it), and even though his expression never shows his emotion, the Turkish big man definitely loved it as well.

Ryan Anderson did not waste any time continuing his white-hot shooting, scoring 12 points in his first 6 minutes. Ryan stayed hot for the remainder of the game, hitting an array of tough shots before finishing 9-14 with 22 points.

Jan 2, 2015; New Orleans, LA, USA; New Orleans Pelicans forward Ryan Anderson (33) shoots over Houston Rockets forward Joey Dorsey (8) and guard Corey Brewer (33) during the first quarter of a game at the Smoothie King Center. Mandatory Credit: Derick E. Hingle-USA TODAY Sports

Anderson was not alone coming off the bench, a common theme in recent games. Dante Cunningham continued to knock down his patented mid ranged jump shot, Alexis Ajinca managed to get a couple of stops on Howard down low, and Austin Rivers played with a lot of energy all night.

Rivers may not have shot the ball well, but he did have some unlucky bounces off the rim before finishing strong against the Rockets’ bench in the fouth quarter. His most efficient opportunity was slammed through the hoop courtesy of a lob from Jimmer Fredette.

Pelicans fans, get ready.

“Jimmer time” may have finally arrived. The former BYU star has come into his own in the past three games, and his play continues to tell the story. He may have only taken 8 shots, but his impact is not done justice by the box score.

All night he was completing slick passes to his teammates, playing reliable defense and just doing all of the little things a la Dante Cunningham. He even stayed on the floor with the starters as they returned in the second quarter and bailed them out with a three from the corner after a bad possession.

With contributions like this night in and night out, Jimmer can become a valued contributor to this Pelicans team.

Oct 16, 2014; New Orleans, LA, USA; New Orleans Pelicans guard Jimmer Fredette (32) against the Oklahoma City Thunder during a preseason game at the Smoothie King Center. The Pelicans defeated the Thunder 120-86. Mandatory Credit: Derick E. Hingle-USA TODAY Sports

From the opening tip-off, the Pelicans were all over Houston on the defensive side of the ball. Jrue Holiday once again played one heck of a game on this end, giving the Rockets’ backcourt no easy looks. He even blocked two three point shots, an event usually reserved for Anthony Davis.

James Harden has had an awful showing against New Orleans in the first two matchups of the season. After shooting 8-23 a few weeks ago, Harden shot 5-13 tonight including 0 free throws for the man that leads the league in free throw attempts. Frustrating the top scorer in the league this badly is nothing to laugh at.

Jan 2, 2015; New Orleans, LA, USA; New Orleans Pelicans forward Anthony Davis (23) is defended by Houston Rockets guard James Harden (13) during the second quarter of a game at the Smoothie King Center. Mandatory Credit: Derick E. Hingle-USA TODAY Sports

The defense played by the team as a whole has really improved as of late. The Pelicans have been doing a fantastic job in their past three games at getting back in transition. The Spurs and the Rockets combined for 178 points against New Orleans in the last two games. If that does not excite you, I do not know what will.

The Rockets never really had a chance to claw back into the game after half time. Kevin McHale, clearly upset with the effort of his starters, inserted his bench unit 90 seconds into the third quarter and kept them there for most of the game.

The Rockets shot 36% as a team in the first half and only 17.6% from behind the arc, an abysmal rate for a team that came into the game among the league’s best at hitting the long ball. They finished the game shooting a hair under 40% and an ugly 20.7% out of their 29 attempts from deep.

The Smoothie King Center was rocking tonight. It was good to see the New Orleans’ fans come out for a big game against a division rival.

Although they did not see the typical monster performance from Anthony Davis, there were plenty of highlights to go around. Whether it was on a tough make from Ryan Anderson, a diving effort from Dante Cunningham, or a deep three from Luke Babbitt, the Pelicans fans made themselves known.

Tonight was one of those nights where everything went right for the Pelicans. But as far as individual performances go, nothing was out of the ordinary. If this group of players can consistently do what they have been brought here to do, they just may shock the world…..

Jan 2, 2015; New Orleans, LA, USA; New Orleans Pelicans forward Anthony Davis (23) against the Houston Rockets during the first quarter of a game at the Smoothie King Center. Mandatory Credit: Derick E. Hingle-USA TODAY Sports