Pelicans Win Sixth Straight: Davis Scores 53 against Phoenix

Another 50+ point-game for Anthony Davis. Another win

Don't count out the New Orleans Pelicans just yet. Just because DeMarcus Cousins is out for the season doesn't mean that the Pelicans will just stop being competitive in hopes of getting a higher seeding in time for the playoffs.

Unfortunately for the Phoenix Suns, they just included themselves in the list of teams that have been victimized by the crazy numbers that Anthony Davis has been putting up as of late as the Pelicans beat the Suns, 125-116 to notch the Pelicans' 6th straight win. The win moved New Orleans into 5th place in the Western Conference with a 34-326 record- just 1.5 games behind the Minnesota Timberwolves who are in third place.

How did the Pelicans beat the Suns? Below are the numbers:

53 Points from Anthony Davis

Of course, the Pelicans wouldn't be in this situation if not to Anthony Davis. He came out victorious against Devin Booker who scored 40 points by setting up a new season-high, 53 POINTS on 16 for 29 field goal shooting. What was more amazing was the fact that  Davis went 21 for 26 from the free throw line- only 4 fewer than the number of free throws that the entire Phoenix team made in the game. Davis also had 18 rebounds and 5 blocked shots.

Mind you, folks. He has been on a tear, averaging 41 points and 15 rebounds per game in all of the Pelicans' last 6 wins and has scored over 40 points in 4 of those wins. Impressive, isn't it?

Everything Advantage Mattered

Don't judge the Suns for their 18-44 record which makes them the worst team in the Western Conference. Given how close the final score was, it's no wonder that the Pelicans needed 53 points from Anthony Davis to beat Phoenix. 

Fortunately for the Pelicans, almost everything worked in their favor no matter how small the difference was. They outshot Phoenix from the field at 47% against 41%. New Orleans also had more assists at 30-23 with 12 of those assists fame from Rajon Rondo. In addition to this, New Orleans also won the battle in points off turnovers at 18-16 as well as in points in the paint at 58-56. See? Small margins made the big differences. 

Conclusion

If Anthony Davis and the rest of the Pelicans can keep on winning at this rate with Davis tearing the stat sheet, this pundit won't be surprised at all if New Orleans will find themselves in the top 4 of the West. Who knows? The Pelicans might even be a dark horse in the championship race.