Grizzlies at Spurs
The San Antonio Spurs are supposed to make quick work of Memphis and it
sure looked that the way in the series opener as the Grizzlies suffered
their largest margin of defeat in franchise postseason history. San
Antonio looks to follow up the impressive 106-74 victory with another
solid effort when it hosts Memphis in Tuesday's Game 2.
The second-seeded Spurs had 13 steals and nine blocked shots - All-Star small forward Kawhi Leonard had four steals and three blocks - as they pulled away behind their suffocating defense. "Kawhi's a very good defender, and he takes great pride in it," San Antonio coach Gregg Popovich told reporters after Game 1. "He did what he usually does for us. It's important. He sets the tone for us defensively, and (Sunday) was a good example of that." The beleaguered seventh-seeded Grizzlies have lost 11 of their last 12 games and their confidence surely took another hit due to the severe beat down. "We're going to forget it," power forward Zach Randolph said afterward. "Put this one in the backwash and get ready for Tuesday."
TV: 9:30 p.m. ET, TNT, FSN Southeast (Memphis), FSN Southwest (San Antonio)
ABOUT THE GRIZZLIES: Memphis needs strong performances from Randolph to avoid being swept and that didn't occur in the opener as he scored just six points on 3-of-13 shooting. "I got some good looks. I just have to knock them down," Randolph told reporters. "They bring a bunch of people when I get the ball. I just have to stay positive. We know what we're dealing with. We've got a lot of young guys. We just have to be better, including myself." Veteran swingman Vince Carter was the Grizzlies' top offensive performer in Game 1 with 16 points on 6-of-7 shooting in 19 minutes.
ABOUT THE SPURS: Leonard, who was named Defensive Player of the Year on Monday for the second straight season, also excelled on the offensive end with 20 points in Game 1 and veteran center Tim Duncan was strong on the board with 11 rebounds. "We got it going defensively," Duncan told reporters. "We were solid the whole way through and then some shots started falling. We kind of extended that lead - I think just giving ourselves a quarter or two to get ourselves rolling." The huge lead allowed power forward LaMarcus Aldridge (dislocated right pinky finger) to be rested - he had 17 points and 27 minutes - as San Antonio had 12 players see 10 or more minutes of action.
BUZZER BEATERS
1. The Grizzlies have lost seven straight road games and 11 of their last 12.
2. San Antonio backup SG Manu Ginobili had just two points on 1-of-5 shooting in 21 minutes but had the best plus/minus ratio on the team at plus-24.
3. Memphis' previous worst playoff defeat was a 27-point differential against Oklahoma City in 2011.