Grizzlies don’t have firepower to keep up with Mavs
DALLAS — Zach Randolph got lathered up for a third straight game. But the veteran power forward’s dynamic play off the bench Friday night could not prevent the Grizzlies from suffering a 104-100 loss to the Dallas Mavericks in American Airlines Center. Randolph’s jab step and feathery jump shot worked. He bullied his way around the basket for points and rebounds. When Randolph smacks himself on the backside, that’s usually a good sign.
He finished with 24 points and made of 11 of 14 shots to go with 10 rebounds. This marked Randolph’s third straight game with 20-or-more points in nearly three years but to no avail as the Grizzlies’ two-game winning streak ended.
His only offensive support came from Mike Conley, who led the Grizzlies with 30 points. Marc Gasol finished with 13 points and misfired on 12 of 18 field goal attempts. He also committed four turnovers.
The Grizzlies didn’t have enough firepower to keep up a Mavs squad driving to earn a playoff spot. Dallas had five players score in double figures led by Seth Curry’s 24 points. Who: Memphis vs. Houston Rockets When, where: 8 p.m., today, Toyota Center TV, radio: Fox Sports Southeast; WMFS 92.9 FM/680 AM
But Memphis’ defense allowed the team to seriously threaten late in the fourth quarter. The Grizzlies held the Mavericks to 94 points for about five minutes — long enough for Tony Allen to score a layup that cut their deficit to 9490 with 1:16 left to play.
Dallas went nine straight possessions with scoring. Gasol lost the ball and then picked up a foul with a chance to slice the deficit to two points. Grizzlies coach David Fizdale then picked up a technical foul arguing the call.
Dallas’ Dirk Nowitzki connected on the technical foul shot. Yogi Ferrell followed with a pair of free throws that put the Mavs ahead 97-90 with just 46.6 ticks remaining.
The Grizzlies faced their largest deficit after a Nowitzki 3-pointer put the Mavs ahead 88-76 with 8:45 remaining in the game. Memphis trailed 79-72 entering the fourth quarter and struggled with Dallas’ athleticism and speed most of the night.
Neither team led by more than four points in a first half that ended with the Grizzlies trailing 51-50. There were 11 lead changes and five ties in the second period.
Conley and Randolph each scoffed 12 points before halftime. They were responsible for shifting the Grizzlies’ offense out of neutral. Both teams laid enough bricks in the first quarter to build an additional wing in American Airlines Center.
Memphis and Dallas combined to miss 15 of the game’s first 20 shot attempts.
The Mavs started Nowitzki and Harrison Barnes at the forward positions, and newcomer Nerlens Noel jumped at center. The matchups often left Nowitzki matching up with Grizzlies forward Chandler Parsons.
Parsons seemed to be inspired going against his former teammate in Nowitzki. On one sequence, Nowitzki scored on a jump shot over Parsons’ reach. Parsons immediately answered with a mid-range shot.
Parsons has been the subject of fan ire that prompted Fizdale to come to his defense. Fizdale expressed “extreme confidence” in Parsons, who finished with seven points on 3-of-11 shooting in 23 minutes.
Fizdale said Parsons would play Saturday night at Houston if his surgicallyrepaired right knee isn’t sore. Parsons is shooting to play both games of a back-toback for the first time this season.
Memphis will again be without big man Brandan Wright because he didn’t make the trip due to personal reasons.
Reach Tillery at Ronald.Tillery@commercialappeal.com or on Twitter @CAGrizBeat.