Knicks Start Second Half With Loss to Grizzlies

Mike Conley scored 22 points in his return after missing seven games with an ankle injury, Mike Miller added a season-high 19, and the Memphis Grizzlies weathered New York's second-half rally to beat the Knicks 98-93 on Tuesday night.

Miller shot 7 for 11 from the field, including 5 of 7 on 3-pointers, to help Memphis win its third straight. Miller's 3 with 45.9 seconds remaining gave the Grizzlies the lead for good as they scored the game's final seven points.

Zach Randolph scored 13 points for Memphis, Nick Calathes had 11 and Tayshaun Prince added 10.

Tim Hardaway Jr. scored 23 points to lead the Knicks, including 14 during the Knicks' fourth-quarter push. Carmelo Anthony finished with 22 points and 11 rebounds, and Amare Stoudemire added 12 points.

Memphis built an 18-point lead in the first half, before the Knicks rallied to take a seven-point advantage in the fourth. However, the Grizzlies had the final push.

Hardaway's 3-pointer with 1:04 left gave New York a 93-91 lead. Miller answered with a 3-pointer to take the lead back for Memphis, then Conley and Courtney Lee each hit two free throws in the final 21.4 seconds for the final margin.

The Grizzlies outscored the Knicks 42-32 in the paint, but New York held the 39-38 edge in rebounding. The Knicks were 17 of 20 from the free-throw line, with Anthony missing the only three for New York, all in the first half.

Memphis ended the game at 49 percent from the floor, while New York was at 41 percent. The Knicks were 6 of 27 on 3-pointers.

After struggling with shooting accuracy in the first half, New York wasted no time chopping into the Memphis lead to start the third quarter.

A 14-4 run in the first 4-plus minutes, capped by a 3 from Pablo Prigioni, pulled the Knicks to 54-51.

Much of that came as New York turned up the defensive pressure, allowing Memphis to hit only three of its first 11 shots in the third. Meanwhile, the Knicks made six of their first eight shots in the quarter.

The Knicks weren't able to maintain that pace, finishing 10 for 21 in the period while outscoring the Grizzlies 27-16 to pull to 66-64 entering the fourth.

Stoudemire's jumper to open the final period tied the score.

J.R. Smith's 20-footer capped New York's 12-1 run that gave it an 82-76 lead with 6:17 remaining. The lead was eventually seven before Memphis' closing push.

The Grizzlies benefited from the Knicks' poor shooting in the first half, taking a 50-37 lead into the break. No one was in double figures for either team.

New York shot 34 percent in the first half, including Anthony missing his first seven shots and going 3 of 10 before the break.

Anthony, an 85-percent free-throw shooter, even struggled from the line, missing half of his six attempts in the first half. New York also went 0 for 9 on 3s in the first two periods.

Meanwhile, Memphis shot 53 percent in the half, including Miller going 3 of 4 and missing only one of his three 3-point attempts.

Copyright AP - Associated Press
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