Marc Gasol drops 23 points while Zach Randolph posts a double-double as Memphis Grizzlies stay alive against Los Angeles Clippers
Zach Randolph and Marc Gasol finally got it going in the series to help the Memphis Grizzlies defeat the Los Angeles Clippers, 92-80 in Game 5 and stay alive in the playoffs on Wednesday night here at the FedEx Forum.
The two big men, who had failed to make much of an impression in the series, got off and running in this one as the Grizzlies pretty much looked like the side which knocked over the San Antonio Spurs in the first round of playoffs
last season. Gasol led the way with 23 points to go along with 7 boards on the night and Randolph followed him up with a double-double performance of 19 points and 10 rebounds.
Rudy g*y finished the night with 14 points which included some key shots late in the game whereas Mike Conley chipped in with 9 points and 6 dimes.
Maurice Williams led the Clippers charge, while coming off the bench to score 20 points. Chris Paul was not far behind with 19 points on a 5-of-11 shooting night, 6 assists and 4 steals; Blake Griffin had a double-double night
with 15 points and 11 rebounds while Randy Foye chipped in with 11.
At the 6:19 mark in the first quarter, Grizzlies trailed 14-17, but from that point on Memphis went on a 22-5 run to hold a comfortable double figure lead at the end of the first quarter with the score being 36-22.
The second quarter saw the lead never get below the double digit mark; however it did get extended to as high as 16 midway during the period. The ample lead enabled the Grizzlies remain comfortable for the remaining time in the
half and at the midway point, they led by 57-42.
In the early stages of the third quarter, the Clippers were able to the keep up with the scoring but failed to bring the deficit down significantly. They managed to get within 14, 51-65, at the 7:11 mark but the Grizzlies responded
with a 10-0 run to lead by as many as 24, 75-51. Clippers, paced by Paul, however reeled off a 14-2 to close the quarter at 65-77.
Like the previous games in this series, Clippers have always tried to make a late charge in the game and this time it was no different. From the 3:02 mark in the third till the 8:45 mark in the fourth quarter, Clippers went on
a 20-4 run to cut the lead down to single digits, setting the game up for an interesting finish.
Clips were able to get the advantage down to 6 and it seemed as though this was going to be another comeback for them. However, Conley and g*y responded with 4 quick points to get the lead back to 10.
With 55.7 second remaining in the game, visitors were again able to get the lead down to 6 and only needed another momentum shifting shot to turn over the tide. But the Grizzlies were not going down like that; g*y drove to the
basket again to push the advantage back to 9 and as the clock ticked down, Gasol and Pondexter knocked down 4 free throws to win this by a margin of 12.
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