Grizzlies Ground Hawks, Leave Atlanta With A Victory
By Mark Krebs
The Memphis Grizzlies (39-30) extend their winning streak to three, defeating the Atlanta Hawks (37-31) 103-91 with spirit and superb defense, evening the season series at 1-1.
| 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | T | |
| Grizzlies | 26 | 29 | 23 | 25 | 103 |
| Hawks | 28 | 24 | 13 | 26 | 91 |
A Turning Point
In the first half, both teams came out hot. By halftime, the score was 55-52 — the Grizzlies holding the slight edge. The 3rd quarter was the turning point for tonight’s game. Typically, Memphis has a rough 3rd period, but tonight was quite the opposite. The Grizzlies built on their first half performance by scoring 23 points and holding Atlanta to just 13 points.
Halfway into the 4th, the Hawks made a push and closed the gap to 10, but the Grizzlies were able to retaliate and comfortably secure a satisfying victory.
Player Of The Night
While there were multiple players who stood out and deserved this recognition, tonight the honor goes to Big Spain. Marc dominated the 1st quarter by dropping 11 points and cemented the tone of the game. With his rounded performance, Gasol (18 points, 10 assists, and 10 rebounds) finished the night with his 3rd career Triple-Double and 2nd of the season.
Tonight’s performance was not only important because it helped win the game, but also because it’s the kind of mindset that we need from him every game. If the Grizzlies are going to make any noise in the playoffs, our All-Star must lead the way.
Playoff Picture
Tonight, both the 7th seed Grizzlies (39-30) and the 6th seed Thunder (39-29) won, keeping Memphis within a half-game of the 6th seed. On the other hand, the 5th seed LA Clippers (40-29) lost tonight to the 8th seed Denver Nuggets (33-35), bringing the Grizzlies within a single game.
The game against the Thunder on April 5th determines if Memphis can tie the season series, or if Oklahoma City will take the regular season series.
The Clippers lead the season series against the Grizzlies. Fortunately, LA is struggling of late, giving Memphis a prime opportunity to change that.
What’s Next?
The next game for the Grizzlies is Saturday (March 18) in the Grindhouse against the San Antonio Spurs (52-15). Tip-off is set for 8PM on Fox Sports Southeast.