Clippers-Grizzlies Preview

By MATT BEARDMORE
Posted Apr 08 2012 1:26PM

A victory over the Memphis Grizzlies last month helped the Los Angeles Clippers get back on track.

The Grizzlies also have made a nice turnaround since that contest.

The two surging Western Conference teams meet in Memphis on Monday night when the Clippers go for their first season sweep in this series in five years.

With the team losing 12 of 19 and questions being raised over coach Vinny Del Negro's job security, Los Angeles (34-22) ended a season-high three-game skid March 24 with a 101-85 home win over the Grizzlies (32-23). That victory sparked a six-game winning streak - the Clippers' longest in 20 years - and now the team makes its lone visit to Memphis in 2011-12 with one loss in its last nine contests.

A victory over the Grizzlies coupled with a Los Angeles Lakers loss to New Orleans on Monday would lift the Clippers back atop the Pacific Division and into third in the West.

"We can't worry about what the Lakers are doing," Chris Paul told the Clippers' official website after scoring 19 points with 15 assists in Saturday's 109-94 victory over Sacramento. "We've got a tough (three-game) road trip and it's going to take a lot of poise."

That could definitely be the case at FedExForum, where the Grizzlies have won four straight and 10 of 12 following Saturday's 94-89 victory over Dallas. Memphis snapped Miami's 17-game home winning streak the previous night with a 97-82 victory.

"We are three up on (the Mavs) on the loss column and now we (won) a tiebreaker with two teams, Denver and Dallas, which is huge as we go forward," said coach Lionel Hollins, whose team is fifth in the West. "It is a tight race but we have to keep winning."

Better shooting could help the Grizzlies continue their surge, as they've made just 42.8 percent from the field since the March 24 loss. However, Memphis' defense has sparked the team's 7-2 run, holding opponents to 91.4 points per game during that stretch.

"Defense is always the difference," said Mike Conley, second in the league to Paul (2.5) with 2.4 steals per game.

Newcomer Gilbert Arenas also is making a major difference in the Grizzlies' playoff push. He's made 10 of 15 3-pointers and is averaging 11.0 points over the last four games.

"He has brought in a new spirit for our guys, and it is contagious," Hollins said.

The Clippers hope Randy Foye can keep hitting from long distance. With Paul and Blake Griffin doing much of the heavy lifting, Foye has provided a nice third scoring option, averaging 20.2 points and hitting 25 of 54 from beyond the arc over the last six games.

"Blake (Griffin) and CP draw a lot of attention, so all you've really got to do is knock down a 3 or go to the basket," Foye said Saturday after making seven 3s and scoring 25 points.

The Clippers, who also beat the Grizzlies 98-91 on Jan. 26, have not swept this season series since taking all three meetings in 2006-07.

Los Angeles ended a three-game skid in Memphis in its last visit, winning 82-81 on April 5, 2011. Mo Williams, who scored nine of his team-best 16 points in the fourth quarter of that game, could be available Monday after missing the last nine games with a sprained big toe on his left foot.

Grizzlies guard Tony Allen is questionable after being sidelined two games with a facial laceration.

Gasol, Gay lead Grizzlies past Clippers

Posted Apr 10 2012 12:31AM

MEMPHIS, Tenn. (AP) The Memphis Grizzlies held on for a big win to tighten the Western Conference race for home-court advantage in the first round of the playoffs.

Marc Gasol scored 18 points, Rudy Gay had 16 and the Grizzlies beat the Clippers 94-85 Monday night, moving one-half game behind Los Angeles for the fourth seed in the West

"It's the wild, wild West," said Grizzlies guard O.J. Mayo, who had 13 points. "You look in the (Eastern Conference). When you get down to the last five or six games, a lot of teams pretty much start resting. In the West, that's not possible. Every game counts down the stretch. You can lose two or three, and have a tough opponent in the first round.

"Everyone is really close, and we moved that much closer to the fourth spot. We've just got to keep playing well."

The game had the atmosphere of a playoff matchup. The Memphis crowd was intense, the play on the floor was physical and emotions were high with a lot of players barking about calls.

The aggressive play was part of the Grizzlies' strategy.

"We didn't want them to run free and get a bunch of lobs," Memphis coach Lionel Hollins said. "Just be physical and aggressive with them, and I thought we accomplished that.

"We held them to 85 points, and they can score."

Mike Conley also scored 13 points for Memphis, which won for the eighth time in 10 games. Marreese Speights had 12 points and Zach Randolph added 10 points and 12 rebounds as the Grizzlies finished with a 48-36 rebounding edge, but committed 20 turnovers.

"That was probably the only negative I saw - the 20 turnovers, and that we gave up 29 points (off turnovers)," Hollins said. "But the rest of the game was really outstanding."

Chris Paul led Los Angeles with 21 points and six assists, while Blake Griffin had 19 points on 9-of-14 shooting from the field. DeAndre Jordan added 14 points and 14 rebounds, and Eric Bledsoe and Randy Foye scored 11 points each.

The Clippers snapped a two-game winning streak and lost for just the second time in 10 games.

"I couldn't make a shot," said Paul who was 7 for 17 from the floor, and missed three of his four attempts from outside the arc. "I couldn't throw a rock in the ocean. We had a lot of easy ones that we just couldn't convert."

The Clippers pulled to 86-83 with 55.8 seconds left on Jordan's dunk. But Memphis hit all six of its free throws, including four by Conley, in the final 31 seconds to preserve the victory.

The Grizzlies led 52-41 at halftime despite committing seven turnovers, a prelude to a night of miscues. Memphis overcame the ballhandling problems by shooting 55 percent and controlling the boards, 23-18 before the break.

"They are one of the best rebounding teams in the league," Clippers coach Vinny Del Negro said. "I thought we did a good job handling some of the pressure, but we did not rebound the ball well, especially in the first half. They were more physical, and we struggled to shoot the ball."

Memphis finished shooting 50 percent, while the Clippers were limited to 41 percent.

Gasol led the Grizzlies with 12 points in the first half. No Clippers player had reached double figures, but Paul and Foye had nine apiece and Griffin had eight. Griffin also spent some time on the bench with two fouls.

The Clippers, who committed five turnovers in the half, including two in the final minute, shot 37 percent before the break.

Memphis extended the lead to 15 early in the second half, and maintained a double-digit margin through much of the third quarter. The Grizzlies led 71-60 heading to the fourth.

Bledsoe's layup got the Clippers' deficit under double digits to start the final period, but Mayo scored a pair of baskets, extending the lead to 81-64 with 7 minutes left.

Griffin and Paul were on the bench at the time. When they returned during the middle portion of the fourth, consecutive baskets by Paul pulled Los Angeles to 84-74 with 3:14 left.

Paul's 3-point play with 1:22 left got the Clippers to 86-81, the closest they had been since the latter stages of the first half. A dunk by Jordan with 55.8 seconds left got them even closer at 86-83.

But Gay got a feed from Mayo on the baseline with the Clippers overplaying defensively and his dunk put the Grizzlies up five. Gay followed with two free throws after Paul's turnover, and Conley converted the final four free throws.

"We got stops," Griffin said of the comeback. "We got in the open court and got some easy buckets. Once that happens, some shots start to fall. We fought back, but obviously didn't finish it out, and that was the problem."

No one had to point out how close the two teams are or could ignore the possibility of a first-round 4 vs. 5 matchup.

"We are right there," Griffin said. "We are going back and forth. We very likely could (face each other), and we are excited about that."

"We wanted to get this win for ourselves," Conley said. "We want to move up and get the fourth spot and go even further if we can."

NOTES: Memphis assistant coach Barry Hecker was back on the Grizzlies' bench Monday night. Hecker missed Saturday's home win over Dallas with an illness. He said it was the first game he has missed since he began his coaching career in 1971. ... Memphis recalled rookie G Josh Selby from Reno of the NBADL. ... Randolph played despite being involved in a minor car accident earlier Monday. There were no injuries. Randolph tweeted shortly after the wreck that he was not injured except for a sore back. With the back end of that car falling off, Randolph drove his Rolls Royce convertible to the arena. "I was kind of scared," he said of driving the Rolls. ... Despite the loss, the Clippers still hold the tiebreaker with a 2-1 advantage in the season series. .Griffin, the league's sixth-leading rebounder at 11.0 per game, had only six Monday night, his second lowest-game of the season. .Jordan had his eight double-double of the season.

Notebook: Grizzlies 94, Clippers 85

Posted Tuesday April 10, 2012 12:02AM

By Marlon W. Morgan, for NBA.com

THE FACTS: Rudy Gay called this Revenge Week for the Memphis Grizzlies as they face four teams they haven't beaten this season. Gay and his teammates managed to check one team off Monday night as they disposed of the Los Angeles Clippers, 94-85, in front of 17,219 at FedExForum. The Grizzlies had six players in double figures led by Marc Gasol's 18 points to go with eight rebounds.

QUOTABLE: "We had no chance of winning the tiebreaker against them. We knew that, but we still wanted to beat them. It was a statement game. We know we can beat them. We knew that the first two games, we just didn't play well."
-- Gay on beating what could possibly be a first round playoff opponent in the Clippers.

THE STAT: The Grizzlies are unbeatable when they shoot 50 percent from the floor. They shot exactly that Monday night making 37 of their 74 shots to improve to 11-0 when shooting at least 50 percent. It was the first time they reached that plateau since March 25 at the Los Angeles Lakers (.512), and the first time they did it at home since Feb. 18 against Golden State (.507).

TURNING POINT: The Clippers trailed for all but one play, but managed to make one late run as they used a 9-0 run to pull to within 86-83 with 55.8 seconds remaining. The Grizzlies finally responded with O.J. Mayo caught Gay free along the baseline leading to a dunk with 37.8 seconds left to hold the Clippers off.

HOT: Gasol entered the game shooting just 31 percent in his last three games. But the Grizzlies All-Star center found his touch against the Clippers, making 6 of his 12 shots for a team-high 18 points. It's the first time Gasol has led the team in scoring since dropping in 22 March 22 at Portland.

NOT: Clippers guard Randy Foye was coming off a 25 point game against Sacramento and had been averaging 20.9 points in his last six games to lead the Clippers, while shooting 47.3 percent from the floor and 46.3 percent from 3-point range. Against the Grizzlies, Foye was held to 11 points on 5-of-17 shooting. He was just 1-of-4 from 3-point range.

QUOTABLE II: "They are one of the best rebounding teams in the league. I thought we did a good job handling some of the pressure, but we did not rebound the ball well, especially in the first half. They were more aggressive, more physical, and we struggled to shoot the ball. We didn't make enough shots to take some of the pressure off us.''
-- Clippers head coach Vinny Del Negro.

NOTABLE: The Grizzlies trailed briefly, 4-2 after two straight baskets by the Clippers. It was the first and only time in three games they have trailed after posting two straight wire-to-wire victories against Miami and Dallas. ... Clippers forward Blake Griffin, who scored 19, was held to just six rebounds, his second-lowest output of the season. He game into the game sixth in the league, averaging 11 boards per game. ... The Grizzlies, currently in fifth place in the Western Conference standings, moved to within a half game of the fourth place Clippers. Monday's game was their last home game against a Western Conference team ranked higher than them in the standings. ... The Grizzlies are normally the team that forces its opponents into turnovers that lead to easy baskets. But this time the Clippers beat them at their own game. The Grizzlies committed 20 turnovers that led to 29 points for L.A. ... Chris Paul led the Clippers with a game-high 21 points to go with six assists. ... Memphis forward Zach Randolph had his third straight double-double off the bench with 10 points and 12 rebounds.

UP NEXT: For the Clippers, Wednesday at Oklahoma City, Thursday at Minnesota, Saturday vs. Golden State. For the Grizzlies, Wednesday vs. Phoenix, Thursday at San Antonio, Saturday vs. Utah.

• Clippers: Billups, Leslie
• Grizzlies: Arthur

• Clippers: Paul
• Grizzlies: --

• Lead Changes: 2
• Times Tied: 4

• Arena: FedExForum, Memphis, TN
• Officials: #17 Joe Crawford, #30 John Goble, #34 Kevin Cutler
• Attendance: 17219
• Duration: 2:20