The Sixers took advantage of the Pelicans being without Anthony Davis and Jrue Holiday by leading wire to wire in a 96-81 win on Friday night at the Wells Fargo Center.
The margin of victory was the Sixers’ largest of the season as they improved their record to 8-31.
The Pelicans dropped to a game under .500 with the loss at 19-20.
Turning point
The Sixers allowed New Orleans to score just 12 third-quarter points. They also forced the Pelicans into 10 turnovers during that period, scoring nine of their 23 points off those errors.
That combination allowed the Sixers to take a 73-59 into the final quarter.
Follow the leader
Michael Carter-Williams led the Sixers in scoring with 22 points. It was the 12th time this season the Sixers’ starting point guard had a team high in points. Carter-Williams also had six rebounds and seven assists.
NBA
Robert Covington turned in an 18-point performance, while Luc Mbah a Moute scored 13.
Eric Gordon led New Orleans with 16 points. Jimmer Fredette added 13 points.
Big man Alexis Ajinca had 16 points and 14 rebounds off the bench for the Pelicans.
Stat-egic
The Sixers had a season-low for turnovers in a half with just two before intermission. They tied their season-low with 10 turnovers for the game.
The Sixers also had 22 assists on 36 made field goals.
Take a bow
Nerlens Noel played arguably the best game of his rookie season.
Noel scored 17 points, grabbed 11 rebounds and had five blocks. He also had two steals and two assists.
What's next?
The Sixers play their fourth game in five days on Saturday in Detroit.
The Sixers beat a much different Pistons team in overtime back on Dec. 6.
Detroit has been on a roll since waiving forward Josh Smith. The Pistons have won 10 of their last 12 games.
The Pistons get the job done by committee with six players averaging between 11.9 points and 15.1 points a game. Greg Monroe leads them in scoring with 15.1 points a night, while Andre Drummond is second in the league with 12.7 rebounds a game.