Grizzlies vs. Spurs recap

Posted on 12/19 at 10:33 PM

It wasn’t easy. And for much of the fourth quarter, it wasn’t pretty to watch. But when the Grizzlies needed a big shot more than they’ve needed one at any time this season, Rudy Gay gave it to them. His three-pointer at the buzzer gave the Grizzlies an 88-85 win over the San Antonio Spurs in a game that had more twists than a season of Lost.

As big as a buzzer-beating win over the defending champs is, it was even more significant given the seven-minute stretch that preceded the final possession. In a game the Grizzlies had led by as many as 23, the Spurs, without an injured Tony Parker, came all the way back to tie the game.

The Grizzlies went scoreless for almost seven minutes down the stretch, but Gay’s shot, that he hit with Tim Duncan closing in on him, pulled the game out.

“The play was for Mike (Miller). Obviously Mike’s a great shooter and they trailed him. I was the second option. If Mike got the ball he would have knocked the shot down, so I got the chance to do it today,” said Gay. “First I looked to see who was guarding me. I knew Tim wasn’t going to get to me quick enough so I just put it up. I thought I had a pretty good follow through, I had enough time to finish my shot, and it went in.”

“I think I just gave him a little too much space. I think he got a little too comfortable,” said Duncan of Gay’s game-winner. “I thought he would at least take one more dribble in and I could contest something toward the top of the key, and I gave him a little more space. He pulled a three on a hand up and the rest is history.”

Early in the game though, you’d have never thought it would come down to that.

The Grizzlies burst out of the gates with an early 17-2 run in the first quarter, and were up 31-19 after one. They pushed the lead to as much as 21 in the second quarter, and were up by 14 at the half. Memphis led by as many as 23 in the third quarter, and were ahead by 17 heading into the fourth. But the Spurs used an early 9-0 run to cut the Grizzlies’ lead to 10. The two teams traded baskets, and with 6:57 remaining in the quarter Mike Miller hit a 19-footer to put the Grizzlies up 84-72.

But from there, the Grizzlies were unable to muster any more offense. Jacque Vaughn cut the lead to 10 on the next possession, and from that point on neither team scored a single point for over three and a half minutes until Brent Barry hit a three-pointer with just over three minutes left. Then it was Tim Duncan with a layup, Manu Ginobili with a layup, and then Duncan with a turnaround jumper. All the while, the Grizzlies couldn’t find the net, and the once 23-point lead was down to one with 46.5 seconds left.

After Damon Stoudamire missed a long jumper on the next possession, the Spurs found Matt Bonner in the corner. He pump-faked his defender, stepped inside the three-point line and took a wide open jumper that rimmed out with under 10 seconds to go. With the Grizzlies having gone almost seven minutes without a point, the Spurs fouled Damon Stoudamire who made one of two free throws, giving the Grizzlies an 85-83 lead with 5.3 seconds left.

Coming out of a timeout with the Grizzlies up by two, Ginobili inbounded the ball to Duncan and immediately got it back, then drove to the hoop virtually uncontested for a dunk with 2.4 seconds left. Just like that, the Grizzlies had squandered a 23-point lead at home against the defending champs, setting up the final possession that led to Gay’s heroics.

Memphis had just 12 points in the fourth quarter on 31.6% shooting, while committing seven turnovers.

“It was a great first half and a very consistent third quarter, and then we were on fumes in the fourth,” said Grizzlies head coach Marc Iavaroni. “Clearly the minutes we played our guys started to show, and I think that had a lot to do with the turnovers in the fourth and the tightening of the nerves. I think that we need to learn how to play that way.”

Gay’s game-winner was his only three-pointer of the game, and he finished with 23 points. But it was Mike Miller who carried the Grizzlies’ offense for much of the night, as he scored a season-high 31 points on 12-18 shooting, including 5-11 from three-point range.

Not to be overlooked in Gay’s heroics and Miller’s season-high effort is the effort Darko Milicic and Stromile Swift gave guarding Tim Duncan. The Grizzlies limited him to 16 points on 7-14 shooting, although he did pull down 14 rebounds. It marks the second time with Milicic in the lineup that the Grizzlies have kept Duncan under 20, as he scored 17 in the season opener on Halloween night. In the game in San Antonio that Milicic sat out due to injury, Duncan was 14-17 for 28 points.

“He’s a good player, I’m just trying to stop him,” said Milicic. “All those big-time players, I’m trying to get into the game and stop them. That’s what I’m doing for this team right now. Offensively I’m not doing much, so I’m trying to defend the big-time players and do the best job I can.”

The Grizzlies return to action Friday night in Detroit, and come home Saturday to host the Philadelphia 76ers.

Posted on 12/19 at 10:33 PM

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Previously: Rudy Gay's production and more

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