Grizzlies outlast 76ers in double overtime
PHILADELPHIA -- Marc Gasol scored 27 points and Mike Conley added 25 points, nine rebounds and nine assists as the Memphis Grizzlies beat the Philadelphia 76ers 104-99 in double overtime Wednesday night.
Zach Randolph contributed four of his 11 points in the second extra period for Memphis, which won its sixth straight. JaMychal Green generated 10 points and 11 rebounds.
Randolph opened the second OT with a hook shot and a jumper to give Memphis the lead for good 95-91.
Gasol added two baskets, the second with 1:58 remaining, to make it 99-95. After the second he was assessed a technical foul for trash-talking Sixers forward Ersan Ilyasova.
Ilyasova made the free throw and a layup by Philadelphia's Jerryd Bayless with 23.1 seconds left sliced the Grizzlies' lead to 99-98.
Conley sank five foul shots in the final 20.9 seconds to salt the game away.
Joel Embiid, the Sixers' prized rookie center, did not play in the second overtime period. Embiid, the third overall pick in the 2014 draft, missed two seasons following a pair of foot surgeries, and is being limited by the team to 24 minutes a game as a precaution.
He played just over 27 through the first overtime, and finished with 12 points and 11 rebounds.
Ilyasova had 22 points and 12 rebounds to pace Philadelphia, which saw a two-game winning streak end. It was the first time the Sixers won back-to-back games since since March 2015. Philadelphia's four-game home winning streak was also snapped.
Robert Covington had 19 points and Bayless finished with 18 for the Sixers.
Conley hit a 3-pointer to open the overtime scoring, but with Memphis up 91-88 later in the period Bayless answered from the arc to forge a 91-91 deadlock.
Gasol scored 10 points as Memphis, which trailed 71-63 after three quarters, opened the fourth with a 19-5 rush to take an 82-76 lead with 3:56 left in regulation.
With Memphis still up by six two minutes later, Ilyasova and Nik Stauskas nailed 3-pointers from the left corner on consecutive possessions to forge an 85-85 tie with 1:01 remaining.
Gasol made a free throw with 46.3 seconds to play, and Covington did the same with 11.2 seconds left, knotting the game once more.
Gasol missed a 3-pointer on the Grizzlies' last possession of regulation, and Embiid, tangled up with Gasol, came up empty on a shot in the lane at the buzzer.
The first quarter, which ended with the Sixers holding a 26-20 lead, featured more outstanding play from Embiid. In one stretch, the 7-2 rookie blocked Randolph's shot from behind, knocked down a 3-pointer and swatted Jarell Green's dunk attempt.
Covington then warmed up in the second quarter, sinking three triples and converting a three-point play for 12 of his 15 first-half points. The Sixers, who led by as many as nine in the half, went into the break with a 51-43 cushion, after Bayless hit a floater at the buzzer.
Covington was the only player on either team to crack double figures in the first half. Conley had nine points to lead the Grizzlies, who shot 36.6 percent in the first 24 minutes.
The Sixers went ahead by as many as 11 in the third quarter, and led 71-63 at the end of the period.
NOTES: The 76ers were without F Richaun Holmes and G Gerald Henderson, both because of illness. G Hollis Thompson made his first start of the season in place of Henderson. ... Philadelphia C Joel Embiid will be held out of Friday's game against Chicago. ... Memphis F Chandler Parsons (knee) missed his third straight game, and F James Ennis (calf) was also held out. ... Grizzlies coach David Fizdale said before the game several factors have contributed to the fast start this season by G Mike Conley. "We've tweaked some things systematically for him," Fizdale said. "Obviously I've prodded him to be more aggressive, but I've also tried to build a system around him that allows him to flourish."