Bulls-Grizzlies Preview

By SANTOSH VENKATARAMAN
Posted Dec 16 2012 9:11PM

It's possible that the first team to 91 points could win Monday night's matchup between the Memphis Grizzlies and Chicago Bulls.

Both these teams are allowing 90.9 points per game, and a huge dose of defense can be expected with the Bulls in search of a fifth straight road win.

Memphis (15-6) and Chicago (13-9) rank second and third in the NBA in points yielded per game. It actually takes three decimal places to separate them with the Grizzlies allowing an average of 90.857 and the Bulls 90.864.

Both clubs credited defense for their latest victories.

Chicago closed on a 12-5 run in Saturday's 83-82 home win over Brooklyn, with a meaningless 3-pointer at the buzzer the only basket allowed by the Bulls over the final 5 1/2 minutes.

"We played great defense the last three or four minutes," guard Marco Belinelli said. "That's why we won the game."

Memphis ended a season-high three-game slide the same night with a 99-86 victory at Utah, limiting the Jazz to 32 second-half points to erase a 10-point deficit at the break.

"We had to get back to what we do, and that's defensive pressure," guard Mike Conley said. "It was frustrating. It was hard to look at us play so well and the last week play so bad."

There are other similarities between these teams, with both shooting 44.2 percent from the field while their benches rank among the league's worst in points per game with Chicago producing 25.7 and Memphis 24.8.

Although the reserves haven't been a major factor, they were Saturday for both teams.

The Grizzlies received 25 bench points, with eight from Marreese Speights and a season-high eight rebounds from Iranian center Hamed Haddadi.

Bulls first-round pick Marquis Teague had a season-high eight points, including two baskets in the game-ending surge. Teague had played sparingly before collecting 14 points and six assists over his last two contests.

"It was fun, it was exciting," Teague said. "It lets you know your coach has confidence in you and you want to go out there and do whatever you can, do what it takes to win."

Teague will likely get some playing time against Conley in a point guard matchup featuring former Indianapolis high school stars. Both are known for defense, and Conley is third in the league with 2.4 steals per game.

In the paint, top rebounders Zach Randolph of Memphis and Joakim Noah of Chicago will try to help their teams control the glass.

Randolph leads the Western Conference with 12.6 rebounds per game after he had 25 points and 16 boards against the Jazz. Noah is averaging 10.6 rebounds - 12.8 over his last six contests.

The home team has dominated this series, winning 25 of 33 meetings. The Bulls are 2-9 all-time in Memphis.

The Grizzlies have won 13 of their last 14 against East foes.

Memphis forward Darrell Arthur is day to day after sitting out Saturday with a mild concussion.

Grizzlies overcome slow start to beat Bulls

Posted Dec 18 2012 12:37AM

MEMPHIS, Tenn. (AP) The Memphis Grizzlies were struggling early against the stingy Chicago Bulls, taking bad shots and committing turnovers.

Then the Grizzlies' bench took over, providing the burst that helped Memphis beat the Bulls 80-71 on Monday night.

"I thought it was huge what they did," Grizzlies guard Mike Conley said of the second-period play by the reserves. "They came in and changed the game, changed the tempo. They got it going up and down a little bit. Got the ball movement where we like it to be.

"I think the first unit saw what they were doing, and what they were able to do," Conley said. "(We) got back in the game and tried to mimic it."

Conley led Memphis with 17 points on 6-of-12 shooting and four assists, while Zach Randolph added 10 points and 15 rebounds.

Rudy Gay had 12 points for Memphis but shot 5 of 13, continuing his slump. Wayne Ellington scored all 11 of his points in the second quarter, when the Grizzlies' reserves provided the lift after a sluggish first period, when Memphis managed only 11 points for its lowest output in the opening quarter this season.

Carlos Boozer led the Bulls with 16 points and 13 rebounds, while Marco Belinelli finished with 13 points. Luol Deng and Joakim Noah had 11 points apiece for the Bulls, but Deng was 4 of 17 from the field.

"I thought our defense was pretty good," Noah said, adding: "We are getting good stops, and we are getting on the break, but we are just not getting those easy points. We are turning the ball over a little bit too much on the break. If we can score on those, we can be better."

Both teams shot just better than 37 percent. But Memphis was 6 of 11 from 3-point range compared to the Bulls hitting only 2 of 11 long-range shots. The Memphis frontline of Gay, Randolph and Marc Gasol were a combined 10 of 34, while the Bulls starting frontline of Deng, Boozer and Noah made 16 of 42.

Memphis controlled the boards 51-39 and had 18 offensive rebounds.

"I thought the second quarter was the problem," Chicago coach Tom Thibodeau said. "We were outscored 28-14. We had a great first quarter, terrible second quarter and got outrebounded on the road."

The Grizzlies shot just 4 of 22 in the first quarter and had six turnovers causing them to fall behind.

But the Memphis bench brought an energy in the second that was missing from the starters. Quincy Pondexter, Jerryd Bayless and Ellington contributed on the offensive end, hitting all five of their shots from 3-point range in the period.

Ellington had 11 points in the second to lead Memphis to a 39-34 lead at the break, the Grizzlies biggest lead of the half.

"As a second unit, we just try to come in and be aggressive and bring some intensity and share the basketball," Ellington said. "Tonight, it was coming my way, and I was knocking down shots.

"When you see a couple go down, as a basketball player, it's kind of natural to just get in that zone," Ellington continued. "I got pretty hot in the first half."

Boozer had 12 points on 5-of-9 shooting from the field and grabbed eight rebounds for Chicago in the half.

The leading scorers on both teams were struggling at that point. Deng, who averages 17.8 per game, was limited to four points on 2 of 7 from the field.

Gay, meanwhile, missed all six of his shots in the half and was scoreless.

Memphis extended the lead to 61-53 entering the fourth, as Conley scored seven in the third. Noah had six points for Chicago.

Marreese Speights connected on a tip-in to open the fourth for the first double-digit lead of the game at 63-53.

Chicago turned up the defensive pressure at that point, becoming much more active in challenging the Grizzlies and pushing them to uncomfortable passes.

"You've got to give them credit," Memphis coach Lionel Hollins said. "They defend everybody. You look at what they're missing with (injured players) Richard Hamilton and Derrick Rose out, and they still win games because they defend you and make you earn everything."

The Bulls tried to get Deng involved in the fourth, but he hit only 3 of 12 shots by the time the game reached the midway point of the final quarter.

Chicago got within five points when Jimmy Butler scored on a breakaway dunk with 5:05 left. Memphis then extended the lead back to double digits, providing enough of a buffer for the Grizzlies to win their second straight.

"We'll take it," Randolph said. "It wasn't pretty, but we got the win."

NOTES: Thibodeau said before the game that Rose's rehab of his left knee injury continues on schedule. There is no timetable for his return, he said. ... Rose, who played one year at the University of Memphis before turning pro, has returned to play at the FedExForum only twice in his five years in the league. .Chicago is 2-9 all-time in Memphis. . Bulls starting G Kirk Hinrich returned after missing two games with a bruised left knee. "It didn't' feel as good as I would like to by any means, but it was good enough to go out there and play." ... There was a 27 second moment of silence before the National Anthem - 26 for each of the victims of the Newtown, Conn., shooting and another for a Memphis police officer killed while serving a search warrant on Friday only hours before the Newtown slayings. . The 71 points was a season-low for Chicago. The previous low was 76 against Indiana on Dec. 4. ... Gay's 12 points ended his streak of consecutive games with at least 14 points at 24.

Notebook: Grizzlies 80, Bulls 71

Marlon W. Morgan, for NBA.com
Posted Tue Dec 18, 2012 1:09 AM - Updated Tue Dec 18, 2012 1:09 AM

THE FACTS: On a night when the offenses for both Chicago and Memphis were shut down by two pretty good defenses, it came down to a deeper bench by the Grizzlies that allowed them to come away with an 80-71 win against the stubborn Bulls. The Grizzlies bench outscored their counterparts 31-16, led by guard Wayne Ellngton's 11 points.

QUOTABLE: "The second unit, we just tried to come in and just be aggressive and bring some intensity and really share the basketball. Tonight, it was just coming my way and I was knocking down shots. ... When you see a couple go down, as a basketball player it's kind of natural to get in that zone. I got pretty hot in the first half."

-- Ellington

THE STAT: Both teams found shots hard to come by in this one. The Bulls finished the game shooting 37.3 percent from the floor while the Grizzlies were just a tad better at 37.5 percent.

THE TURNING POINT: The Grizzlies found themselves trailing 20-11 after the first quarter as the Bulls opened the game shooting 53 percent to just 18 percent by the Grizzlies. The Grizzlies turned to their bench, which consisted of Ellington, Jerryd Bayless, Quincy Pondexter, Marreese Speights and Darrell Arthur in the second quarter. Their energy on both ends of the floor ignited a 20-8 run that turned the game in the Grizzlies favor for good.

HOT: The Grizzlies' bench had the hot hand from long range, combining to make five of their six 3-point attempts. Ellington was the hottest, going 3-for-4. The rest of the team was 1-for-5.

NOT: The Grizzlies front court of Marc Gasol, Zach Randolph and Rudy Gay struggled throughout. The three combined to make 10 of 34 shots for 26 points Gay had 12 of those points, all coming in the second half.

QUOTABLE II: "I thought the second quarter was the problem. We were outscored 28-14. We had a great first quarter, terrible second quarter, and got outrebounded on the road. We have to go after the ball. They played hard. That's how they play. You have to take care of the ball and we didn't do that. Then, we didn't get back and got in a big hole. A big hole."

-- Bulls' coach Tom Thibodeau.

NOTABLE: The Grizzlies kicked off their three-game homestand by improving to 10-2 at FedExForum this season. The win also moved them to within a game of the San Antonio Spurs in the Western Conference's Southwest Division. ... The Grizzlies improved to 16-5 overall, the fastest they've ever reached 16 wins in franchise history. Their previous best was during the 2005-06 season when they were 16-9. ... The 11 points scored by the Grizzlies in the first quarter was their lowest total in any quarter this season. After scoring 20 points in the first quarter, the Bulls totaled just 51 the rest of the game. ... The Bulls are now just 2-9 against the Grizzlies in games played in Memphis. ... Marco Bellinelli picked up his seventh straight double-digit game with 13 points. ... Zach Randolph had hit 18th double-double of the season with 10 points and 15 rebounds.

UP NEXT: For the Bulls, Tuesday vs. Boston, Friday @ New York, Saturday @ Atlanta. For the Grizzlies, Wednesday vs. Milwaukee, Friday vs. Dallas, Saturday @ Houston.

• Bulls: Rose
• Grizzlies: Selby

• Bulls: --
• Grizzlies: --

• Lead Changes: 7
• Times Tied: 5

• Arena: FedExForum, Memphis, TN
• Officials: #19 James Capers, #7 Kevin Fehr, #27 Dick Bavetta
• Attendance: 17305
• Duration: 2:09