Grizzlies at Trail Blazers
THE STORY: Home cooking and a little bit of Jamal Crawford seem
to have served the Portland Trail Blazers well as they improved to 7-1
at the Rose Garden with a 101-89 victory over Sacramento on Monday.
Crawford scored a season-high 26 points, 12 in a decisive second
quarter. “Coming into the game I just felt good,” he said. “It was a
fresh start. I just cleared my head and said this is day one all over
again.” Said Craig Smith, who had 10 points and seven rebounds: “It felt
good being home with the fans - we got some home cooking in.” The host
Blazers continue their back-to-back-to-back Tuesday against the
resurgent Memphis Grizzlies, who have won seven in a row and rallied
from 20 down in the third quarter for a 91-90 victory Monday at Golden
State.
TV: 10 p.m. ET, SportSouth (Memphis), CS Northwest (Portland)
ABOUT THE GRIZZLIES (10-6):
Memphis is perhaps the surprise team of the league, especially
considering the Grizzlies have been without Zach Randolph since the
beginning of the year and won’t have him back for two months because of a
torn MCL. “We're a good team that knows how to play the right way,”
said backup guard O.J. Mayo, who averages 18.1 points in his career
against Portland. “Right now, we're all playing the right way. The
chemistry is there. We're all in tune and in rhythm. Every night, it
seems easier and easier, playing great team ball on both ends.”
ABOUT THE TRAIL BLAZERS (10-7):
One of the reasons the Trail Blazers have had to earn “must-win” home
games as Gerald Wallace calls them is because they are only 3-6 on the
road. “Until we can figure out our woes on the road, we have to win
every game at home, that’s the only way we can survive right now,” said
Wallace, who bounced back from missing Saturday’s with a sore right
middle finger by scoring 20 points and grabbing eight rebounds.
BUZZER BEATERS:
1. Portland has won 11 of the last 14 meetings overall against Memphis.
2. Portland guard Wesley Matthews averaged 20.3 points in three games against Memphis last season, making 10 of 20 3-pointers.
3. Memphis forced the Warriors into a season-high 24 turnovers Monday.