HOUSTON -- There was little left for the Houston Rockets to do beyond shrug off their frigid shooting and keep plugging away, both offensively and defensively, even while 3-pointer after 3-pointer clanked off the rim.

The fact that they sealed a win from the perimeter proved surprising.

James Harden delivered a whirling-dervish performance, dragging the scuffling Rockets to a 100-95 victory over the New Orleans Pelicans on Wednesday at Toyota Center.

Harden posted 39 points, 12 rebounds and seven assists, his final assist coming with 51 seconds left via a corner 3-pointer from Patrick Beverley that gave Houston the lead for good at 97-95. However, Harden also recorded eight turnovers, indicative of the grind that was this game.

"That's what I do. I'm aggressive," Harden said. "I'm aggressive every game, no matter if I make a mistake or not, it's going to happen. Ultimately I'm going to do a better job of making the right decision than not. It goes both ways."

The Pelicans (23-36) surged ahead 93-87 when Anthony Davis, who entered the fourth quarter with a quiet six points, completed a three-point play before adding a 3-pointer with 2:59 left. Harden replied with the last four points of a 7-0 spurt that put the Rockets in front.

"We turned the ball over," Davis said. "Houston capitalized on their fastbreak points. Houston capitalized on our mistakes down the stretch."

The Pelicans committed 23 turnovers that Houston turned into 24 points.

Davis finished with 12 points on 5-for-13 shooting. He added eight rebounds. Norris Cole paired 21 points with eight assists. Dante Cunningham added 16 points for New Orleans, which fell despite outscoring Houston 42-9 from the 3-point arc.

Houston (30-31) missed 31 of 34 3-point attempts but countered with 58 points in the paint and 27 in transition. Beverley posted 15 points and nine rebounds while Dwight Howard added 16 points, nine boards and three blocks. Harden nabbed four of the Rockets' 15 steals.

"Going to the rim, getting those fouls, knocking down our free throws counteracts a lot of those 3-point misses," Rockets interim coach J.B. Bickerstaff said. "It puts a lot of pressure on (teams) defensively, it puts a lot of foul pressure on their key guys, so it's key that we continue to do that."

The Rockets' awful perimeter shooting paved the way for New Orleans to take early advantage, largely behind Cole, whose 18 first-half points paced the Pelicans.

Houston missed its first 15 3-point attempts, offsetting 18-for-23 shooting (78.2 percent) inside the arc in the first half. Despite those struggles, the Rockets trailed by only nine when Cole hit a 3-pointer with 7:47 left in the second, and they responded with a 14-5 run to pull even, a spurt that included their only two treys before the break.

Harden and Beverley buried treys roughly three minutes apart, with Beverley pulling Houston even at 44-44 with 2:57 to play in the half.

Cole answered with a trey and closed the second quarter with a driving layup and a three-point play to get New Orleans within 53-52 by the break.

Cole keyed another burst to open the third quarter, one that included Pelicans 3-pointers on four consecutive possessions. Cole hit two treys and assisted on the other two, both by Cunningham.

Harden fueled a 10-0 run that pushed Houston back in front. That set the stage for closing kick in which the Rockets didn't relent despite their woes.

"They're a tough team when they get going and they are penetrating to the basket," Pelicans guard Eric Gordon said. "They didn't hit their threes, but we just needed to get back in transition, and we turned the ball over a lot. That gave them points in the paint."

NOTES: According to published reports, the Rockets will sign F Michael Beasley and G Andrew Goudelock for the remainder of the season. Beasley, the No. 2 overall selection of the 2008 draft, was recently named MVP of the Chinese Basketball Association after averaging 31.9 points, 13.2 rebounds and 3.8 assists for the Shandong Golden Stars. Goudelock, a former D-League MVP who played parts of two seasons with the Los Angeles Lakers (2011-13), signed a two-year deal with a team option for the second season. Houston recently released Gs Marcus Thornton and Ty Lawson. ... Pelicans F Anthony Davis returned to the lineup after a one-game hiatus caused by a right toe sprain. Davis' return coincided with another lineup change as C Kendrick Perkins replaced Alexis Ajinca. New Orleans featured its 28th different starting lineup Wednesday. ... Rockets C Clint Capela returned to the rotation after missing three games with a right foot sprain.