Conley, Gasol lift Grizzlies over Wizards
MEMPHIS -- Mike Conley scored 24 points -- 11 coming in the closing minutes of regulation and in overtime -- and Marc Gasol added 20, including three key 3-pointers in the same time span, to lift the Memphis Grizzlies to a 112-103 victory Sunday night over the Washington Wizards.
Gasol's 3-pointer with 15.7 seconds left in regulation forced overtime and two more 3s in OT clinched the win. Memphis made 15 3-pointers.
John Wall had 22 points and 13 assists and Marcin Gortat added 14 points and 12 rebounds to lead the Wizards. Each of the Wizards' starters scored in double figures.
The Grizzlies had solid contributions from their reserves. Zach Randolph had 22 points and Vince Carter scored 18, making five of his six 3-pointers. The Grizzlies' reserves scored 49 points.
Memphis led by as many as 15 in the first half, but fell behind by eight late in the fourth quarter. The Grizzlies put together a rally in the closing minutes and forced overtime on a deep 3-pointer by Gasol. Gasol drained a 27-footer to tie the game at 100. His 3-pointers in OT came in succession and extended a 104-100 lead to 110-100.
After a torrid first half from beyond the arc where they made nine of 18, the Grizzlies cooled. Memphis attempted only four 3-pointers (making two) and couldn't build on a four-point halftime lead (58-54).
The Grizzlies missed their first five shots of the third quarter and with contributions from Randolph and Carter were able to take a one-point advantage (78-77) into the fourth quarter.
Behind 32 points from their bench, the Grizzlies led 58-54 at halftime. Randolph had 15 points on 7-of-10 shooting and Carter scored 13, connecting on each of his four 3-pointers.
Carter made three of his long-range shots in the opening two minutes of the second quarter and Andrew Harrison added a 3-pointer of his own a minute later to give the Grizzlies their biggest lead of the half: 40-25.
The Grizzlies led most of the first half behind another strong showing from beyond the arc. Led by Carter, they made nine of 18.
Memphis has ranked in the bottom five in the NBA for 3-pointers made in each of the past five seasons, but opened the season by making 11 in a victory over Minnesota.
NOTES: With the Grizzlies in the midst of playing four games in five days, coach David Fizdale is restricting the minutes for G Mike Conley and C Marc Gasol during the stretch. Conley was limited to six minutes in the first half of Saturday's loss at the Knicks. ... Wizards G John Wall and G Bradley Beal each have scored their career highs against the Grizzlies. Wall had 47 in March 2013, while Beal scored 37 against Memphis in February 2014. ... F Chandler Parsons (right knee) and C Brandan Wright (left ankle) did not play. They have yet to play for the Grizzlies in three games this season. ... In their 114-99 loss at Atlanta Saturday, the Wizards committed 19 turnovers, a mistake-prone effort cause in part by poor spacing, according to coach Scott Brooks. "When (Atlanta's) defense picked up, we kind of got back on our heels for a little bit," Brooks said. "Those are things that we can correct and, going forward, we need do."