MILWAUKEE -- Eric Gordon scored 21 points, centre Alexis Ajinca added 16, and the New Orleans Pelicans headed home for All-Star weekend with a 102-98 victory over the Milwaukee Bucks on Wednesday night. Rashad Jennings Blue Jersey. The Pelicans had seven players in double figures and stayed in the game despite foul trouble all night for big man Anthony Davis. Davis ended up playing the fourth quarter with four fouls, providing enough of a presence on both ends of the floor to allow his teammates to go strong to the hoop. The short-handed Bucks still hung around and Ersan Ilyasovas 3 with 58.7 seconds left got Milwaukee within 100-98. After Brian Roberts missed a layup, Milwaukee had one last chance, but got tied up in the backcourt and turned the ball over with 9 seconds left. Brandon Knight had 22 points and nine assists to lead the Bucks, limited to nine players because of a litany of injuries. They may have missed shot-blockers Larry Sanders (eye) and John Henson (ankle) the most with the Pelicans attacking the basket late. A layup by Tyreke Evans and soft floater in the lane by Roberts sandwiched around a missed dunk by Ilyasova gave new Orleans a 100-95 lead with 1:06 left before Ilyasova redeemed himself with a 3. The surge by the Pelicans answered an open 3 from the corner by Nate Wolters that had drawn Milwaukee within one with about 2 minutes left. But after getting to the hoop for much of the first half with Davis on the bench with three fouls, the Bucks had trouble getting good looks in the lane after halftime. Ilyasova finished with 16 points and nine boards in his first game back since missing two with back spasms. Davis finished with 12 points and Roberts had 17. Ajinca came a point short of his career high. The 7-foot-2 centre finished 7 of 7 and stabilized the middle while Davis was on the bench. Averaging just 4.0 points a game coming into the night, Ajinca went 4 of 4 in the Pelicans 37-point third quarter that turned a three-point halftime deficit into a seven-point lead. New Orleans coach Monty Williams sought a quick start on defence from his team after giving up at least 29 points in the first quarters of their two previous games, both losses. The Pelicans heeded their coachs pleas and held the Bucks to 19 points in the first quarter. But with foul trouble plaguing Davis -- the NBAs leader in blocked shots -- the Bucks broke through early in the middle. Nifty interior passing helped get Zaza Pachulia and Ilyasova find room to operate underneath. Knight passed up an open 3 and drove the lane to draw Davis third foul with 6:39 left in the second quarter, just seconds after Davis had returned to floor. Milwaukee took advantage from there and got a boost from Gary Neal on the outside with 11 first-half points to take a 49-46 lead at halftime. Neal finished with 18 for the night. NOTES: Pelicans coach Monty Williams was 4-1 all-time against the Bucks entering Wednesdays game. ... Reserve C Greg Stiemsma is a native of Randolph, Wis., and played his college ball at Wisconsin from 2004-8. ... The Bucks were the only team that New Orleans had yet to face this season coming into the contest. ... Sanders saw a specialist for his fractured orbital bone, though Drew wasnt sure when he would return. Jason Pierre-Paul Red Jersey. The Richmond, B.C., native added eight rebounds and was named the tournaments most valuable player as the top-seeded Ravens defended their 2011 championship. "The biggest thing is to win the whole thing as a team," said Scrubb. Steve Weatherford Red Jersey. Ortega played 42 games for Double-A Tulsa in the Texas League last season before sustaining a hairline fracture on his shin.VANCOUVER -- The Vancouver Canucks had a December to remember. Since the calendar flipped to 2014, its been a very unhappy new year. After compiling a 10-1-2 mark last month that put some distance between the teams chasing them in the Western Conference wildcard race, the Canucks have lost five in a row, including four straight to start January. The latest setback came Tuesday, when the Pittsburgh Penguins scored twice in the final 1:11 of regulation with their goalie pulled to tie the game before winning 5-4 in a shootout. All told, the Canucks have given up six goals in five games this season when opponents have their goalie on the bench for an extra attacker. "Late in games, I always talk about situational play," Canucks head coach John Tortorella said after Thursdays practice at Rogers Arena. "Situational play is a mindset and we have not totally grasped that. Thats a mental toughness, to me. I believe you can develop that type of mental toughness -- to play in the (hard) areas at certain times, at certain (moments) of games. "I think at times weve done it this year, and obviously of late here, we havent." Tortorella said the only way to deal with blown leads is to get back on the horse. "You hope youre leading again 3-2 in the third period ... and you find a way to get it done," he said. "You need to grasp something." Tortorella said that for him, the most fascinating part of coaching is the mind, adding that its his job to make sure players learn how to be tough mentally game in and game out. "I tell the players theyre screwed -- if I see it once, I know its there," said Tortorella. "When you show signs you can do it, then you need to demand yourself to do it more consistently. Thats a big part of our responsibility. Ive seen us play stiff enough to handle situations. "When youre developing an identity of a hockey club, it falls on the coach to demand it and keep it there. Im in it with them as far this little slump here." Vancouvers current losing streak includes road defeats to the Los Angeles Kings and the Anaheim Ducks. Thhe Canucks currently sit in the first wildcard position, but they host the powerhouse St. Antrel Rolle JerseyLouis Blues on Friday before travelling back to Los Angeles and Anaheim as part of a three-game roadtrip. "The schedules not getting any easier," said Canucks defenceman Kevin Bieksa. "Weve got a lot teams that are ahead of us in the standings that were playing. These are the teams we have to beat if we want to catch them." Bieksa said the players arent dwelling on the late-game collapses, but are instead trying to learn from the mistakes. "Sometimes maybe we clench up a bit towards the end of the game with the lead because weve lost it so many times and its in the back of guys head," he said. "You still have to go out there and make a play. Its not just going back and just hammering pucks around the boards and shooting it out and then they come right back on you. "Somebodys got to make a play. Somebodys got to make a tape-to-tape pass. Somebodys got to hold onto a puck down low and kill some time. Someones got to beat a guy and get a shot on net. Its just a mindset of continuing to play the same way." Apart from blowing leads, the Canucks have also had a miserable time in the shootout this season. Vancouver has a meagre 2-6 record and is a combined 4-for-32 on shootout attempts. Tortorella had the Canucks practice the shootout for nearly 15 minutes at the end of practice on Thursday, with fourth-liner Zac Dalpe and defenceman Jason Garrison finding a measure of success. Tortorella downplayed the exercise, saying its impossible to mimic game shootout conditions in practice, before sharing what he thought of NHL games being decided by a skills competition. "It should be out of the league," he said. "That gimmick should be out of the league." Note: Canucks forward Alexandre Burrows and defenceman Alexander Edler were both full participants at Thursdays practice, but Tortorella said neither has been cleared to play. Burrows has been out with a broken jaw, while Edler has been sidelined by a knee injury. ' ' '