Memphis Grizzlies beat New Orleans Hornets 93 – 87 with Marc Gasol on song – NBA Recap
The Memphis Grizzlies got another win under their belts in the shortened 2011-2012 NBA season at the expense of the New Orleans Hornets. The Hornets are still reeling from the loss of super star point guard Chris Paul in the off season and although they
have shown some signs of improvement, they are still short of reaching a consistent level with their performances.
On the other hand, the Grizzlies are coming off of the best season in the franchise’s history last year and have looked very dangerous in the early going this time around. The team has lost star power forward Zach Randolph but others have stepped up in his
absence.
Others such as centre Marc Gasol, who was excellent again tonight with a double-double effort, 22 points and 12 rebounds. Point guard Mike Conley was also immaculate, notching up his double-double with 18 points and 10 assists while O.J. Mayo scored 16 points.
Jarrett Jack was the brightest light for New Orleans with a game high 27 points to go along with 8 assists. Trevor Ariza also played well for his 18 points and 7 assists.
Grizzlies were always the stronger team going into the match but with the game being played at the New Orleans Arena, Hornets were in with a shout as well. That though wasn’t the plan for Memphis, who raced out of the blocks with a 22 – 9 burst to start
of the game. After the first quarter, they were up 33 – 22.
New Orleans started their fight back in the second period and showed some good character in taking the game to Memphis. The Grizzlies weren’t overly bothered though and finished the half still leading, although by a smaller margin at 55 – 48.
New Orleans were focused coming out of the break and started off with a 7 – 0 spurt that levelled the scores at 55 apiece. The Grizzlies responded with a 7 – 0 run of their own to restore the lead to 7 points. The back and forth continued between the two
teams until the end of the quarter, with Memphis up by 5 points at 72 – 67.
The fourth quarter was a gritty affair. At first it looked like Memphis good walk away with the game easily as they slowly increased their lead and were up by double digits with just 5:07 left to play. New Orleans however went on a furious 10 – 0 charge
that cut the gap to just 2 points. Memphis though were able to respond and held them off for a 93 – 87 win.
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