Grizzlies at Spurs
THE STORY: The San Antonio Spurs couldn't have figured their return trip from Memphis would have them needing a victory to stay alive in their Western Conference first-round series with the Grizzlies. Yet that's where the top-seeded Spurs find themselves after dropping Games 3 and 4 to a gritty Memphis club. San Antonio looks to extend the best-of-seven set Wednesday night at home.
TV: 8:30 p.m. ET, NBA TV, Fox Sports Southwest
ABOUT THE SPURS: After staying close but ultimately falling just short in a three-point loss in Game 3, the Spurs looked to bounce back in a big way in Game 4. A five-point first-quarter lead was as good as it got for San Antonio, which looked nothing like the team that won 61 regular-season games. The Spurs committed 17 turnovers - seven coming from point guard Tony Parker - and was outscored 30-15 in a pivotal third quarter that may have been the death blow for San Antonio's chances of capturing the NBA title. Parker led the way with 23 points but had just one assist, while Manu Ginobili scored just 14 points on 5-of-13 shooting.
ABOUT THE GRIZZLIES: Some experts figured Memphis' sensational front line of Zach Randolph and Marc Gasol would give the Spurs' big men some trouble. But few could have predicted that the entire team would be so effective against the top regular-season club in the Western Conference. Nine different players scored at least eight points in Game 4, led by Mike Conley with 15 and Darrell Arthur with 14. Arthur put the spike in San Antonio's chances Monday night with a vicious dunk on an alley-oop pass from O.J. Mayo. Memphis has now won five of the last six meetings with the clubs dating back to the regular season.
WHO'S HOT/WHO'S NOT: Richard Jefferson has been the bust of the series. Once one of the top 30 offensive players in the NBA, the veteran forward went scoreless in nearly 27 minutes of action Monday night and is averaging just 8.3 points in the series. Arthur is averaging nine points in just over 17 minutes per game while shooting 63 percent from the field.
KEY STATISTIC: 0-5 - San Antonio's record in the Tim Duncan era in series in which they fall behind 3-1. The way the Spurs have played of late, breaking that trend seems unlikely.
LAST WORD: "The whole team is very frustrated. I mean we go through a whole season and get that first seed, and now we’re just one game away to be eliminated so it’s most important for us to focus on Game 5." - Parker