Grizzlies 108, Warriors 90

Grizzlies 108, Warriors 90

THE FACT: The Memphis Grizzlies beat Golden State for the 10th consecutive time overall Saturday night, the second-longest winning streak over a single opponent in franchise history, behind an active 11-game winning streak against Minnesota.

THE LEAD: For the first time this season, the Grizzlies looked like the team that reached the Western Conference finals last season. They returned to playing hard-nosed defense and pounding the ball in the paint. Those two things resulted in a 108-90 win over Golden State, the first time the Grizzlies have scored 100 points in regulation this season. Zach Randolph led the Grizzlies with game highs of 23 points and 11 rebounds. Mike Conley added 20 points and six assists. The Warriors were led by Stephen Curry, who returned from an ankle injury to score 22 points with five assists.
QUOTABLE: "That was the Grizzlies, for the most part. We held our hats on the defensive end. ... We just got back to powering the ball inside and trying to play the passing lane, and pressing up on the wings, showing high on the pick-and-roll coverage. It's everyone paying attention to detail for 48 minutes. This was a perfect sign of the Grizzlies playing hard and playing together."
-- Grizzlies' guard Tony Allen.
THE STAT: The Grizzlies got back to dominating in the lane. They outscored the Warriors in the paint, 54-18, which helped them shoot 53 percent from the floor. Golden State entered the game ranked second in the NBA in allowing opponents to shoot just 39 percent.
TURNING POINT: The Grizzlies built a 14-point lead late in the second quarter only to have Golden State rally to cut the halftime lead to 54-50. But the Grizzlies responded with a 36-point third quarter, tying their highest output in a quarter this season, to build a 90-77 lead heading into the fourth quarter. The Grizzlies shot 68.4 percent (13-of-19) from the floor in the period. It was the first time they held a lead going into the fourth quarter this season.
HOT: Randolph returned to action for the first time since leaving Wednesday night's game for the birth of his son, Zach, Jr. He responded with season highs in both points (23) and rebounds (11).
NOT: While Golden State guard Klay Thompson has been on fire to start the season, averaging 21.8 ppg, he continued to have his struggles against Grizzlies' Allen. Thompson scored just 12 points on 5-of-13 shooting, 2-of-8 from 3-point range.
QUOTABLE II: "I'm very disappointed. It's very easy to make the excuse that we played last night, but that's not an excuse. We didn't execute. They were the more physical team and it's just a disappointing loss for us. We just couldn't get over the hump. This is a good basketball team that pretty much has its way against us. We've got to figure them out. We've got to figure them out."
-- Golden State coach Mark Jackson.
NOTABLE: The Warriors entered the game ranked second in the NBA in 3-point shooting, averaging 45 percent. But against the Grizzlies, they shot just 33 percent, making 10-of-30. ... All five Memphis starters scored in double figures for the first time this season. Marc Gasol chipped in with 18 points, Allen had 12 and Tayshaun Prince scored a season-high 10 points. ... The Warriors capped off their four-game road trip with a 2-2 record after losing the final two games. They return home to face Detroit Tuesday night. ... David Lee was held to 13 points, six below his average, after fouling out with 8:59 left in the game. ... Grizzlies coach Dave Joerger shortened his bench rotation, going primarily with just three bench players -- Mike Miller, Nick Calathes (filling in for the injured Jerryd Bayless) and Kosta Koufas. The odd men out were Ed Davis, who played the final 1:28, and Quincy Pondexter, who played just over four minutes.
UP NEXT: For the Grizzlies, Monday at Indiana, Wednesday vs. Toronto, Friday at L.A. Lakers. For the Warriors, Tuesday vs. Detroit, Thursday vs. Oklahoma City, Saturday vs. Utah.