Memphis Grizzlies overwhelm Atlanta Hawks; record impressive 96 – 77 win – NBA Recap
The Memphis Grizzlies came up trumps at the Philips Arena on Thursday as they overpowered the Atlanta Hawks for a 96 – 77 win. The Grizzlies produced strong play to exploit some weaknesses in the Hawks armour and were rewarded with a good win.
Their task was made simpler after Atlanta’s backup centre Jason Collins went out of the game with an injury in the first quarter. The Hawks were already short on big men after, Al Horford has been ruled out for most of the season after surgery, and the Grizzlies
were able to punish them for their lack of size to devastating effect.
Memphis admitted after the game that they went after the Hawks and attacked the inside because they sensed they could press home their advantage in that department.
"We knew after Collins went out that they were a little small in the front court, so we wanted to try to get some penetration and get it to our big fella, Marc," Mike Conley said. "We felt like we had an advantage there and we tried to use it all night."
Conley had 15 points and 6 assists for the Grizzlies while Marc Gasol completed a double-double with 11 points and 10 boards. Rudy g*y led all scorers with 21 points, Tony Allen had 18 and so did O.J. Mayo.
The Hawks seemed rattled throughout the game and never really got going. Atlanta players accepted after the game that they struggled after the loss of Collins early in the match up.
"We just didn't have the size to match up with Gasol," Willie Green said. "We put (Zaza Pachulia) on him, and he did a good job, but it takes a team effort. We'll see how the injury is and try to move forward as a team. But it's definitely a tough loss if
he's out."
In any case, the performance from Atlanta was poor. Joe Johnson, arguably the best player on their roster, managed only 10 points. Of the three players that made it into double figures, Josh Smith had the highest number at 11.
The game was competitive at the start, with the first quarter finishing 21 – 19 to Memphis, but it soon faded into a completely one sided affair.
The second quarter set the tone for the rest of the proceeding on the night, as the Grizzlies simply dominated Atlanta. The Hawks were hapless, and though they got into the lead at one point in the second, collapsed towards the end, conceding a 14 – 5 run
to Memphis that put the visitors in charge, going into halftime at 53 – 43.
The Grizzlies punished them more coming out of the interval, piling on 26 points in the third segment opposed to just 12 from the Hawks. The 4th quarter was reduced to just a formality as Atlanta were happy to get off the court, final score 96
– 77 to the Grizzlies.
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