Dominated from the start, the Atlanta Hawks saw their team-record 19-game win streak - level with the fifth-best in NBA history - snapped on Monday with a 115-100 loss at New Orleans.
Anthony Davis, fourth among NBA scorers, netted 29 points and grabbed 13 rebounds to ignite the Pelicans to their fifth win in six games.
The Hawks, who had not lost since falling to Milwaukee on December 26, were foiled in reaching 20 wins in a row as their streak was snapped exactly two years after the Miami Heat began a run of 27 in a row.
"It was a lot of fun," Davis said. "We knew they were going to come out and be aggressive. We just tried to counter that.
"I just tried to come out be aggressive and play hard. I went out with everything I had and all my energy and left it all out there. I feel wonderful."
Atlanta fell to 40-9, stumbling just behind Golden State for the best record in the NBA. The Hawks had not owned the NBA's best record so late in a season since moving to Atlanta from St. Louis in 1968.
The Pelicans jumped ahead 32-22 after the first quarter and kept the margin in double-digits most of the way to the finish. Atlanta made a run early in the third quarter but New Orleans responded and led 88-74 entering the fourth quarter.
At 26-22, the Pelicans moved within 1 1/2 games of Phoenix for the eighth and final playoff position in the Western Conference.
The Hawks went 17-0 in January, the first team in NBA history to win so many in a month without losing a game.
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