ATLANTA -- The New Orleans Pelicans, who began the season 2-10, turned things around with a three-game winning streak. The Atlanta Hawks, who were 9-2 after a six-game winning streak, are heading the other way with three defeats in a row.

The Pelicans were without all-star Anthony Davis for much of Tuesday night's game because of a right knee contusion, but still rolled to a 112-94 victory over the Hawks.

Tim Frazier matched his career high with 21 points and was one off his best ever with 14 assists for the Pelicans, who led by 35 points in the third quarter.

"We came out hungry. We jumped on them from the start and continued to fight the whole game," Frazier said. "When (Davis) went down everyone stepped up, but we already had the lead and just kept rolling."

Terrance Jones scored 15 of his 17 points in the first half.

"We started off the game the right way," said coach Alvin Gentry, whose team was up by 20 points after 12 minutes. "We were really good defensively in the first quarter and because of that we ended up with some easy shots. It was a really good win for us against a quality team."

Davis was hurt diving into the stands trying to save a loose ball late in the first quarter, crashing into a seat in the fourth row. He returned to start the fourth quarter although the Pelicans led 95-71 and finished with 13 points.

"He came back out and said that he could go," Gentry said. "We put him back in to see if he was ready for (Minnesota on Wednesday) and then took him back out."

"I banged (my knee) on a chair," said Davis, who came in averaging 31.7 points and 11.3 rebounds. "They worked on me knee and it was good enough to go back in. I'm OK."

The Pelicans' winning streak coincides with the return of Jrue Holiday after the point guard missed the first 12 games to be with his wife, who had surgery for a brain tumor, and their newborn child.

Holiday, who totaled 43 points and 16 assists in his first two games back, played 27 minutes against the Hawks and had 15 points and four assists.

"Adding Jrue back to the mix gives us a comfort level and a confidence level we didn't have earlier when we struggled to close out games," Gentry said.

Dennis Schroder, who missed all eight of his shots in the Hawks' loss in New York on Sunday, had 14 points and seven assists. Kyle Korver also scored 14, hitting 4 of 5 3-point attempts.

Dwight Howard played just 18 minutes and had eight points and six rebounds.

"We can't hang our heads like the season is over," the center said. "It's is a marathon, not a sprint. The only way we can get through this little slump is together. We're going to be a really good team. Things will turn around for us."

The Pelicans shot 63.6 percent in the first quarter and held the Hawks to 26.1 percent shooting while taking a 34-14 lead.

"The first unit has got to come out with more intensity," Howard said.

Despite being without Davis, the Pelicans went up 49-19 with four minutes gone in the second quarter was ahead 66-44 at halftime after making 6 of 11 shots from behind the 3-point arc.

Jones, who skipped the morning shootaround because he wasn't feeling well, made his first five shots.

"I didn't know what to expect," Gentry said. "He said that he thought he could go and he wanted to try to get in early and try to break a sweat. I though he played a really good game."

NOTES: G/F Thabo Sefolosha returned for the Hawks after missing the previous three games because of a sprained left ankle. He scored six points in 23 minutes. ... G Jrue Holiday again came off the bench in his third game back with the Pelicans. ... The Hawks open a five-game road trip -- their longest of the season -- at Indiana on Wednesday. ... The Hawks are 3-0 in the second game of back-to-backs. ... The meeting with the Pacers will be the first chance for former Hawks G Jeff Teague to face his old team. ... After playing at Indiana, the Hawks go west for four games over six days. ... The Pelicans return to New Orleans to play Minnesota on Wednesday. ... The Pelicans are 1-3 at the end of two games in as many days.