Thursday night featured a return to the court for many NBA teams including the new orleans Pelicans and their newest star DeMarcus Cousins. The former Sacramento Kings big man took to the hardwood to join his new "twin towers" teammate and fellow NBA All-Star Anthony Davis for the home game at Smoothie King Center. Unfortunately for the duo, and the Pelicans' faithful fans, the team suffered a crushing blowout loss, 129-99 at the hands of the Houston Rockets and their newest star in his big debut.

Pelicans' dynamic duo

Cousins' debut performance was impressive, despite a loss.

The power forward finished with 27 points on 11-for-19 shooting. Cousins also snatched a whopping 14 rebounds, had five assists, five steals, and blocked four shots, showing he's the real deal no matter what uniform he's wearing. The stat line is certainly enough evidence to show that the Pelicans made a smart move to bolster their roster.

Davis led the team with 29 points and also had nine boards, two steals, and two blocks. The two forwards scored more than half the team's total points, but more was clearly needed against a team that is making waves as one of the top three or four in the Western Conference.

They'll need some time to gel, although with expectations of reaching the playoffs still there, the sooner the better.

Harden & Houston still surging

The Houston Rockets are still the No. 3 team in the Western Conference and played like it. Leading the way for the team was not MVP frontrunner, but the man the team recently acquired in at trade from the Los Angeles Lakers.

Lou Williams came off the bench to hit a career-high seven threes and finished with 27 points to lead all scorers. Williams' fellow bench player, and recent three-point contest winner, Eric Gordon finished with 19.

For the starters, Ryan Anderson hit 5-for-9 on his shots including three of his six three-pointers to finish with 17 points.

Harden had a double-double, scoring 13 points and dishing out 14 assists to his Rockets teammates. Harden continues to edge former OKC teammate Russell Westbrook in terms of NBA MVP winner favorites.

What's next on the schedule?

For New Orleans, the biggest takeaways from tonight's loss were not only the expected power combo of two of the league's best forwards but also the 20 turnovers and giving the Rockets' 39 percent of their attempted 51 three-point shots. Davis, Cousins and the Pelicans have a Saturday night meeting with the Mavericks in Dallas at 8:30 p.m. Eastern Time.

The Houston Rockets continue to play above expectations this season. Fans have to be pleased with how Williams stood out in his debut for tonight's win. The team will return home to host the Minnesota Timberwolves on Saturday night at 9 p.m. Eastern Time.
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