Grizzlies shut down Celtics

 

     In what had the makings of a blowout, the Memphis Grizzlies had to use grit-and-grind down the stretch to hold off a game Boston Celtics team 110-106 without their emotional leader Kevin Garnett, in front of a sellout crowd of 18,119 at FedExForum.

The Grizz did in fact start slow, being down in the first quarter at one point 12-2. But once head coach Lionel Hollins inserted instant offense in Jerryd Bayless, Memphis quickly fought back to close the gap to within two, 31-29 by the end of the first 12 minutes of action.

“I thought that JB gave us a huge lift early on because I didn’t know how were we going to score,” Hollins said. “He came in and started making shots, got on a roll and carried us in the first half. And Darrell Arthur also had a nice first half, and then everyone else started to chip in afterwards.”

Arthur, making just his second start of the season in place of All-Star forward Zach Randolph, had 12 points at the break to help pace the Grizzlies to a 61-51 lead. Arthur got the start because Randolph was late to a team shoot-around, but he and Bayless picked up the slack. Bayless also had a tremendous first half, scoring 20 points en route to a 30-point night. That effort was needed because the Grizz were without center Marc Gasol – whom re-injured an abdominal tear and doctors are saying that there is no timetable for his return and is listed as day-to-day, or indefinite.

“We miss Marc but it wasn’t a big impact defensively,” Hollins said. “They (Celtics) scored 34 points in the paint and was 45 percent from three-point range. Maybe from a rebounding perspective and offensively, but we did score 110 points – so it was just one of those nights.”

The Celtics now have a four-game losing streak going. But that wasn’t due to a lack of effort on their part. Being down by as many as 20, head coach Doc Rivers decided to sit captain Paul Pierce midway through the fourth quarter in favor of his younger mates and it worked. Using a smaller, quicker lineup, Boston was able to cut the big Memphis lead to just 102-98. But it became a free throw contest in the end, and Grizzlies pulled out the victory. Pierce did lead a balanced C’s attack with a team-high 26 points on 10-of-17 shooting from the field. Three other players finished in double figures as well.

The Grizzlies had their own version of a balanced attack. Seven players scored in double figures for the current five-seeded Memphis squad. Other than Bayless and Arthur, Randolph, TayShaun Prince, Ed Davis, Tony Allen and Mike Conley all did their part – scoring 15,12, 11, 10 and 12 respectively.

“We saw this challenge as an opportunity for other guys to step up,” Conley said. “Obviously JB had a great night, but Ed Davis, Tayshuan and Darrell all made big plays and showed up in Marc’s absence. We all are a confident bunch, we all have to take on a bigger role and responsibility and have to make do as long as we can without him.”

This game wasn’t without its drama either. As the tide turned in the second quarter, and in typical Celtics fashion, guard Jordan Crawford and Bayless mixed it up a bit when Bayless went to block a breakaway layup and had the ball thrown at him by the Boston player.

“I mean I’m really a nice guy, but don’t push me” Bayless said. “But it is what it is.”

The Grizzlies will next be in action when they hit the road to play the Washington Wizards on Monday night. The tipoff is scheduled for 6pm.

Tigers burn Blazers

by Adam Douglas

 

     It was four players' last home game as a Memphis Tiger. But the one that stood out was the usual suspect of the group - senior forward D.J. Stephens. He made a lasting impression on the 18,289 Tigers fans that packed the building as he and The University of Memphis Tigers (27-4, 16-0 in Conference USA) finished off the UAB Blazers (15-16, 7-9 in C-USA) 86-71 - and the regular season undefeated for just the fourth time in school history.

"To go 16-0 in league play is special," said Josh Pastner, head coach for the Tigers. "It is not a given, not a birthright, u can't take those things for granted. And to think where we started, a lot of negativity being thrown in our direction, the slow start in the Bahamas - we stayed the course and we appreciate it, because its so hard to do."

There were a lot of storylines heading into this game. The Tigers were playing their last game in Conference USA before they head to what's left of The Big East. If Memphis won, they would finish the season undefeated and become just the fifth team in conference history to do so. And it was a day to remember the four seniors - Charles Holt, Ferrakohn Hall, Stan Simpson and Stephens for their Tiger careers, but the biggest storyline of the day came from sophomore guard Joe Jackson.

In arguably his best game as a Tiger, Jackson nearly came away with a triple-double. He scored 17 points, dished out 10 assists and pulled down nine rebounds - not to mention he also had 6 steals which would have given him a rare quadruple-double if he had four more and one more rebound.

"I'm just playing within myself and not trying to do too much," Jackson said. "I had it stripped out of my hand and I was trying to get it, but it's hard when you know you're right at it - but it is what it is."

The game was not without drama either. After being up by as many as 15 points at halftime, Memphis let up on the gas out of halftime and allowed UAB to go on a 15-2 run that cut the lead to 45-44 at the 14:41 mark on a Jordan Swing three. But the heart, soul and effort machine of the team D.J. Stephens stepped up and showed that senior leadership. He converted a three-point play that eventually sparked the Tigers and they went on to pull away as they wore down the Blazers. They increased the lead to as many as 21 before Pastner emptied the bench to give the rest of the seniors a chance to play on their day.

"For all four of us to be able to walk off the court together for the last time made me happy," Stephens said. "People told me to go kiss the Tiger at midcourt when I walked off - and that's been done before. But one of the coaches said we may get a technical for that," Stephens said. So I decided to kiss the rim and that's never been done."

Four Tigers in all scored in double figures against UAB. Stephens, Geron Johnson and Chris Crawford all helped carry the scoring load with Jackson. They each finished with 13, 19 and 20 points respectively. The Tigers also shot a very respectable 52.6 percent from downtown, but struggled again from the stripe, going 16-of-23.

Up next for Memphis is the Conference USA Tournament, which starts Wednesday in Tulsa, Oklahoma. Since the Tigers are the No.1-seed in the tournament they have a bye and will play Thursday at 6pm with the winner TBD.