NEW ORLEANS -- Tyreke Evans sore right knee -- and long-term contract -- gave him every reason to sit out the final two games of a losing season with the Pelicans. Paul Goldschmidt Jersey . Yet even as coaches and trainers encouraged him to rest, Evans was having none of it. Instead, he played some of his most relentless, productive and crowd-pleasing basketball of the season. He capped it off with 25 points and 10 assists on Wednesday night, and New Orleans closed out a difficult, injury riddled season with a 105-100 victory over the playoff-bound Houston Rockets. "I just want to have fun, man," Evans said. "It was my last game this year. ... I was hurt. I could have easily sat out, taken the back seat, but coach talked to us about finishing strong and thats what I wanted to do." Two nights earlier, Evans scored a career-high 41 points in a stunning victory over Oklahoma City. Against Houston, he enlivened the crowd with end-to-end drives, high razzle-dazzle dribbles and an array of midair contortions in order to get off shots in traffic near the basket. "He drove me crazy with some of his uh-oh plays, but these last two games, I hope he gets player of the week," coach Monty Williams said. "We needed these two games to go into the summer. He stepped up big-time and carried the team." The Rockets, who had already locked up the No. 4 seed in the Western Conference, rested James Harden, Chandler Parsons and Jeremy Lin. Still, the game was competitive as a number of role players sought to make the most of extended action. Troy Daniels, a rookie guard out of VCU whod scored only 20 points in 31 minutes all season, hit 6 3s and finished with a career-high 22 points. "I was ready to get out there," Daniels said. "It shows the coach has a lot of faith in me. Obviously I have a lot of work to do and a lot of progress to make, but it was a good start for me to get my confidence up." Evans gave New Orleans the lead for good with a driving layup with 2:35 left, then sealed it with a powerful move in which he wedged his way between Jordan Hamilton and Josh Powell for a running, right-handed hook from the lane. "It wasnt just about, We aint making the playoffs; lets pack it up," said guard Anthony Morrow, nodding at Evans. "When a guy who signs a long-term deal still plays the last two games of the season the way he did, it says a lot about him." Austin Rivers added 18 points and Morrow 15 for the Pelicans, who shot 52.4 per cent. Neither team led by more than single digits. New Orleans had the largest lead at 90-81, but Houston responded with a late 11-4 run that included 3s by Hamilton and Daniels, then took a brief 100-99 lead when Hamilton stole the ball and converted a fast-break lay-in with 2:51 left. Regular Houston starters Terrence Jones, who had 17 points and eight rebounds, and Patrick Beverly, who had 14 points, also played as if it mattered. Hamilton hit four 3s on his way to 14 points and Donatas Motiejunas had 11 points and 10 rebounds. "We werent going to change in the standings, so we played a bunch of guys that we hadnt played before," Rockets coach Kevin McHale said. "Its time to get some guys comfortable." Dwight Howard was among a minority of players who looked like as if he was merely going through the motions. He was 1 of 5 shooting, including a missed 3 after which he allowed a smirk, and grabbed four rebounds while turning the ball over three times. But Howard had more important things to think about with the fourth-seeded Rockets, who won 54 games this season, starting a playoff series against Portland on Sunday. Notes: After missing the past two games with a left ankle injury, Pelicans guard Brian Roberts played 4 minutes, long enough to make three free throws. That got him to 125 made foul shots this season, qualifying him for the official NBA lead in free throw shooting percentage at 93.9 per cent. "To have that, thats something thats special and something Ill never forget," Roberts said. ... Pelicans rookie C Jeff Withey tied a career high with five blocks. ... The loss was Houstons first against the Pelicans in four meetings this season. Fernando Rodney Jersey . - For a general manager who preaches building through the draft, Reggie McKenzie has struggled to find impact players his first two years in Oakland. Shelby Miller Jersey . -- Phil Mickelson will be watching the final two rounds of the Masters from home for the first time in 17 years. http://www.diamondbacksapparelsshop.com/ . A rainy day saw the former champion Djokovic handle 14th-seeded Frenchman Jo- Wilfried Tsonga 6-3, 6-4, 7-6 (7-5) under the roof on the famed Centre Court.SAN DIEGO -- Bronson Arroyo figures the Arizona Diamondbacks rotten start has got to turn around at some point. "I mean, I dont think well play 9-22 every 31 games," Arroyo said after he and two relievers combined to hold the punchless San Diego Padres to three hits in a 2-0 victory Friday night in a matchup of the bottom two teams in the NL West. Aaron Hill provided Arroyo with all the backing he needed with a two-run single off Andrew Cashner in the third inning. "We put ourselves in a huge hole, especially in this division with two teams that are pretty potent, so its going to be a long season no matter how you cut it because were going to fighting uphill the whole way," Arroyo said. "Who knows where its going to end up." The Diamondbacks finally hit double digits in wins, but still have the worst record in the majors -- 10-22. They came in with the worst ERA, 5.20. The Padres came with a .217 batting average, worst in the NL and second-worst in the majors. It was the first shutout for the Diamondbacks. The Padres were shut out for the fifth time, tying them with Atlanta for the big league lead. But the 37-year-old Arroyo, in his 15th big league season, was sharp. Arroyo (2-2) allowed three singles in seven innings, struck out six and walked one. He is 4-0 with a 1.54 ERA in his last five starts against San Diego. He didnt allow a hit until Yonder Alonso singled to right with one out in the fifth. Until then, the only baserunner was leadoff batter Everth Cabrera, who reached in the first when Arroyo couldnt handle a chopper for an error. Arroyo then proceeded to get 13 straight outs, including when Seth Smith grounded into an inning-ending double play in the first. "They ran a lot of lefties at me as usual and I got the chance to take advantage of their aggressiveness in the outer half," Arroyo said. "They hit a lot of ground balls to second base. I had a little more zip tonight. I felt a little bit better. It makes a difference for me when I can get the ball up there 88, 89. Once in a while, makee them respect some of my other stuff a bit more. Nick Ahmed Jersey. " Padres starter Andrew Cashner had a bad third inning. He loaded the bases on a single and two walks, and then allowed Hills two-run single to left with two outs. "It was nice to have a smooth one from front to back," Arroyo said. "Get a couple of runs off a tough pitcher and be able to hold the lead was definitely the way you want to start a road trip." Arizonas Kirk Gibson, who won his 300th game as manager, said Arroyo "has been trending toward throwing the ball better and better, and it was the best stuff hes had all year tonight. We saw it from all arm slots; keeping the ball down when he wanted the ball down. I think he hit 90 mph one time." Padres manager Bud Black said Arroyo "has been doing it for a long time. He got back to the form that made him tough." San Diegos Alexi Amarista reached third with two outs in the fifth before being stranded when rookie Jace Peterson grounded out. The Padres had runners on the corners with two outs in the seventh before Peterson again grounded out. Addison Reed pitched the ninth for his seventh save in eight chances. Cashner (2-4) allowed two runs and four hits in six innings, struck out one and walked three. "I didnt think I did a very good job of a lot of stuff," Cashner said. "But I felt like I kept the team in the game, gave us a chance to win. The spot with the bases loaded, I cant hang a slider." NOTES: Arizonas Ender Inciarte, recalled from Triple-A on Wednesday, singled to left in the ninth for his first big league hit. He made his first start, in CF. ... Padres LF Carlos Quentin, who started the season on the disabled list with a bone bruise in his left knee, is scheduled to begin a rehab assignment Saturday for Class AA Lake Elsinore at Inland Empire. RHP Casey Kelly, who missed all of last season while rehabbing from reconstructive elbow surgery, will start that game as he also begins a rehab assignment. It will be his first competition since 2012. China Jerseys Wholesale Cheap Jerseys 2018 Cheap Jerseys 2019 Stitched Jerseys NFL Jerseys From China NFL Jerseys Wholesale Cheap Authentic Jerseys ' ' '