The Golden State Warriors got a career night from center Andris
Biedrins, leading one of the Warriors’ better offensive showings in
a road game in the season.
But the Warriors’ defense couldn’t pick up the tab. Biedrins had
28 points and 21 rebounds. But Golden State couldn’t get enough
stops, allowing Memphis to shoot 52.5 percent from the floor in the
Warriors’ 116-111 loss to the Grizzlies on Friday. Golden State
(7-9) has lost five straight games.
MEMPHIS, Tenn.
The Golden State Warriors got a career night from center Andris Biedrins, leading one of the Warriors’ better offensive showings in a road game in the season.
But the Warriors’ defense couldn’t pick up the tab.
Biedrins had 28 points and 21 rebounds. But Golden State couldn’t get enough stops, allowing Memphis to shoot 52.5 percent from the floor in the Warriors’ 116-111 loss to the Grizzlies on Friday. Golden State (7-9) has lost five straight games.
The Warriors got 23 points, eight assists and three steals from guard Monta Ellis. Point guard Stephen Curry had 26 points and four assists. But Biedrins stole the show, surpassing 20 points and 20 rebounds for the first time in his career. It was the first such game by a Warrior since Mike Dunleavy had 24 points and 20 rebounds against visiting Indiana in March 2004.
But it was the defense that failed the Warriors. Forward Rudy Gay had 25 points and guard O.J. Mayo scored 23 off the bench for the Grizzlies.
The Warriors offense went cold in the fourth quarter. They made just two of their first 10 shots of the quarter, including a run of seven straight misses
The Warriors had limited offensive options on the floor because Ellis, Curry and Biedrins were all on the bench to start the quarter. Curry had four fouls, and Ellis and Biedrins had played nearly all of the first three quarters.
Coach Keith Smart didn’t put Biedrins in until the 8:59 mark. Ellis and Curry didn’t check back in until the 6:48 mark. By then, the Warriors’ deficit had grown to 95-87.
But, somehow, the Warriors still found a way to make it a nail-biter.
The Warriors trailed 106-98 with 2:18 left after a pair of free throws by Grizzlies guard Mike Conley, who finished with 14 points and five assists. But Golden State went on a 13-6 run over the next 2 minutes, 7 seconds.
Ellis sparked the spurt with a driving layup. Moments later, Curry found swingman Reggie Williams for a 3-pointer from the right corner. Golden State trailed 108-105 with 1:16 left.
The deficit was down to three again, 112-109, after a layup by Curry. He stole the ball from Conley to get the ball back to the Warriors. After Curry made two free throws, the Warriors trailed 112-111 with 11.6 seconds left.
Gay followed with a pair of free throws, and the Warriors needed a 3-pointer. Ellis drew two defenders when he brought the ball up the court. As he’d done all night, he found the open man. Forward Dorell Wright was wide open on the right wing, 24 feet from the basket. He missed.
Ellis gave a rousing speech to his teammates before the game, trying to fire them up enough to prevent another slow start. It didn’t work.
The Warriors made half of their 22 shots in the first quarter. But they trailed by as much as 13 in the first quarter and turned the ball over six times. More important, their new-and-improved defense looked like the easy-and-vulnerable defense of old.
Golden State allowed Memphis to shoot 61.4 percent from the field in the quarter. The Grizzlies knocked down 4 of 5 from 3-point range, many of them wide open, and more than half their baskets were assisted.
Memphis set a season high for points in any half this season, leading 63-53 at intermission. Golden State has trailed at the half in 26 consecutive road games.
But, as they’ve done often, the Warriors stepped it up in the third quarter. They opened the second half with a 9-2 run to tighten up the game. Oddly enough, Ellis made the difference as a facilitator.
After splitting a pair of free throws to open the half, Ellis found big men Jeff Adrien and Biedrins for layups, the latter cutting the Grizzlies’ lead to 65-62. The Warriors stayed close the rest of the quarter, even tying the game once, at 80 all with 2:21 left in the third. But Memphis closed the quarter with a 7-2 run, five by rookie guard Greivis Vasquez, to take an 87-82 into the fourth quarter.
— Story by David Thompson II, Contra Costa Times
