Thunder at Grizzlies
The Memphis Grizzlies look to win for the 10th time in 13 games when
they host the Oklahoma City Thunder on Tuesday. One of the victories
during the streak came in Oklahoma City on Nov. 16, when Memphis scored
43 fourth-quarter points en route to a season-high output and a 122-114
win.
Thunder forward Kevin Durant missed last month's meeting due to a hamstring injury and he's coming off the type of triple-double a player doesn't want - 20 points, 10 rebounds and 10 turnovers. That effort in Sunday's 98-95 victory over Sacramento became acceptable as Durant drained the go-ahead jumper with 23 seconds left. "I've been trusted my whole career, taking those shots," Durant told reporters. "I've failed plenty and plenty of times. I've made shots as well. I just try to stay focused and stay disciplined in what I do, and they went down for me." The Grizzlies also won a close finish on Sunday as Jeff Green's dunk with 0.5 seconds left gave them a 95-93 victory over the Phoenix Suns.
TV: 8 p.m. ET, FSN Oklahoma (Oklahoma City), FSN Southeast (Memphis)
ABOUT THE THUNDER (12-8): Durant has committed 15 turnovers over the last two games and he was highly frustrated with the number of miscues against Sacramento. "Nobody wants to turn the ball over," Durant told reporters. "It's frustrating for myself, but I'm not one of those guys that's going to walk out of here with my head in my hands because I had 10 turnovers. It's not the first time I've had a lot of turnovers, so just got to be better next game. That's all it is for me." Point guard Russell Westbrook has a triple-double against the Kings with 19 points, 11 rebounds and 10 assists, and he had 40 points and 14 assists in last month's loss to Memphis.
ABOUT THE GRIZZLIES (12-9): Backup shooting guard Courtney Lee played one of his best games of the season as he matched his season high of 18 points and had a season-best six assists in the victory over Phoenix. Lee scored 13 of his points in the fourth quarter when he went 5-of-6 from the field and also delivered the assist on an inbounds pass to set up on Green's game-winning dunk. "I just stayed mentally strong and mentally prepared," Lee told reporters. "I knew my number was going to get called at some point. Watching the game I saw how they were trying to guard us and was looking at the spots where I could make a play."
BUZZER BEATERS
1. The Grizzlies have won four of the past five meetings.
2. Oklahoma City backup SG Dion Waiters is 12-of-41 shooting over the past four games.
3. Memphis PF Zach Randolph is averaging 9.5 points on 9-of-26 shooting over the past two games.