The Memphis Grizzlies tightened its defense in the fourth quarter to hold off the Philadelphia 76ers 92-84 at FedExForum on Sunday evening.
The Grizz forced the Sixers into eight turnovers in the fourth quarter alone and 27 in the game, a season-high for the Grizzlies defense as they improved to 10-8 on the season.
For the fifth game in a row, Philadelphia held a lead late in the fourth, but again couldn’t find a way to hold on and moved to 0-18 while still searching for the first win of the season.
Matt Barnes played an instrumental part in the win as he littered the stats sheet with 13 points, eight rebounds, five assists and two steals. With a plus-minus of 11 to lead all players, the Grizzlies moved to 8-0 in games where Barnes finishes in the positive in that category.
Randolph returned from knee soreness to his reliable production and performance, recording his fifth double-double of the season with a 17-point, 11-rebound outing. Marc Gasolled the team in boards with 12, but just missed out on another double-double as he finished with nine points. Point guard Mike Conley’s 20 points led all scorers, and he added four rebounds and five assists.
Isaiah Canaan led the Sixers with 16 points, while rookie Jahlil Okafor finished just shy of a double-double with nine points and 13 rebounds.
Both teams struggled to hold onto the ball, combining for 53 turnovers. Memphis turned it over 26 times, which resulted in 28 points for the 76ers, while scoring 25 off of the Sixers’ turnovers. Philadelphia entered tonight’s game averaging 18.5 turnovers per game, but it was a rare night for the Grizzlies, who are usually among the top teams in turnover differentials.
Memphis held a 37-31 lead after the first half, and extended the lead to as much as 10 early in the third frame, but the Sixers caught on fire from beyond the arc while taking advantage of seven turnovers for 14 points to outscore the Grizzlies 36-27 and take a three-point lead into the fourth quarter.
The Sixers shot 63.6 percent both from the field (14-for-22), and on three-pointers (7-for-11) in the frame, with six different players hitting from long range. Four of the seven three-pointers came in the final 5:18 when Robert Covingtontied the game at 51. -- Jared Emerson/Grizzlies.com
Key Stats of the Night
- Both teams combined for 53 turnovers tonight… Memphis finished the game with 26 turnovers, a team season-high, resulting in 28 points for the 76ers… Philadelphia had 27 turnovers, leading to 25 points for Memphis… Heading into tonight’s game, the Grizzlies led the NBA in turnover differential per game (-3.6) while the 76ers were the league’s worst (+3.7).
Key Run of the Night
- With 7:47 remaining in the game and trailing 71-76, the Grizzlies went on a 15-1 run to climb back from the deficit and take a nine-point lead (86-77) with 3:09 on the clock.
Quotes
Player Notes
- Tonight marked the return of Zach Randolph’s from a five-game absence due to a sore right knee… He finished with 17 points and 11 rebounds to record his fifth double-double of the season.
- Mike Conley tallied 20 points and dished out five assists on the night… He has scored 20+ points five times in the last eight games.
- Marc Gasol pulled down a season-high 12 rebounds on the night to go with nine points, three assists and four blocks in 39 minutes.
- Matt Barnes scored 13 points off the bench and led the team in +/- rating (+11)… Memphis is 8-0 this season when Barnes records a positive +/- rating.
- Jeff Green scored 13 points and extended his streak of consecutive free throws made to a franchise-record 40 straight… Green surpassed Marc Gasol (36) for the club record streak just six days after Gasol passed Anthony Peeler (34)… Peeler held the old record, which ended on March 6, 1997, for 6,838 days (or 18 years, eight months and 19 days).
- Jahlil Okafor finished just shy of a double-double with nine points (3-of-11 FG) and 13 rebounds.
- Robert Covington recorded 12 points, seven rebounds, four assists, seven steals and eight turnovers… Covington tallied his third consecutive game with at least six steals, which is the longest such streak by an NBA player in nearly 30 years (when Alvin Robertson had at least six takeaways in six straight contests from Nov. 15-28, 1986).
Next Game
The Grizzlies will face the Pelicans in New Orleans on Tuesday at 7pm. Catch the action starting with the Grizzlies Live! pregame show at 6:30pm on FOX Sports Southeast and 92.9FM ESPN Radio.
Next Home Game
Join us as we roll back the clock and celebrate Memphis hoops history at our second Grizzlies/Memphis Sounds Hardwood Classics Night on Thursday, Dec. 3 at 7pm when the Grizzlies take on the Spurs
Grizzlies Cyber Monday 48-Hour Sale starts at Midnight!
Save up to 60% off all December home games for 48 hours only.
Enjoy the most Grizzli-ful time of the year with our insane-tastic Cyber Monday… and Tuesday 48-Hour Sale. For 2 days only, starting at 12am Cyber Monday November 30 running through Midnight Tuesday December 1, select tickets for ALL December home games are up to 60% off.