Tyreke Evans nails last second shot to topple the Grizzlies 100-98
Zach Randolph pulled off one of his most sensational performances of the season scoring 35 points and 17 rebounds, but the phenomenal guard and the Memphis Grizzlies were left awestruck as Tyreke Evans ripped in a buzzer-beating shot from long range to hand
the Sacramento Kings a 100-98 win.
In a nerve wrecking encounter, Evans who was the NBA Rookie of the year last season went berserk in the last 20 seconds of the game. He drove down the lane for a thunderous jam to give the Kings a one point lead. However after O.J. Mayo counter-punched with
a jumper 1.5 seconds from the buzzer, Evans stole the show from downtown giving way to wild celebrations from the Kings and a sell-out crowd at the ARCO Arena.
The match started on an even note as both the teams maintained parity. The Grizzlies though always remained a step ahead of their opponents on the back of Randolph’s 14 points, as they closed the first period with a slender 27-24 advantage. The Grizzlies
came out with all guns blazing in the second frame, as they launched an 11-3 spurt within a span of four minutes to cement their dominance at 38-27. The kings however had an air of tenacity about them on the night, as they counter-attacked with a 13-4 assault
capped by a ring smashing dunk from Omri Casspi to pull within two.
The Sacramento surge woke up the Grizzlies defence as they started to find their shots. The Kings though cashed in on some sloppy foul play from the Grizzlies, slipping in 10 free throws on the trot as they remained in hunt at 50-51 going into the break. The
Grizzlies again hit the pace in the third quarter as they slowly built their lead and at one point stretched it to 69-60, but Beno Udrih produced a six point play to peg the Grizzlies back again. Memphis though always remained ahead and finished the third
quarter at 74-70.
Their dominance continued deep in the final quarter, and with less than five minutes remaining a Mayo free throw sparked them to an 89-82 advantage. Things however quickly changed after that as the Kings, who have struggled all season in the fourth quarter,
launched an unprecedented push. Francisco Garcia started it all as he nailed one from the three-point line and after Randolph neutralized their surge for nearly a minute, the Kings finally broke away with an Udrih jumper. A spate of free throws followed, as
the home team leveled things out at the 57.6 second mark. Randolph though was simply unstoppable on the night, as he again put the Grizzlies ahead with a hook shot. Mike Conley followed it with a free throw to make it a three point game, and the stage was
set for a close Memphis victory.
Evans had other ideas though as he took control of the match, scoring five points including the game-breaking last ditch 22-footer in the last 16 seconds, to carry his team to their second win in their last eighteen games. Beno Udrih led the charge for the
Kings with 24 points and six assists as they snapped their seven-match losing streak.
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