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Manu scores 17, Spurs even series with Memphis

Apr 21, 2011 - 4:01 AM San Antonio, TX (Sports Network) - Manu Ginobili scored 17 points in his return to the lineup, and San Antonio held off the pesky Memphis Grizzlies, 93-87, to even their Western Conference quarterfinal series after two games.

The Grizzlies shocked the top-seeded Spurs, 101-98, in the opener of the best- of-seven series Sunday. Ginobili, who sat out that game because of a right elbow sprain, added seven rebounds, four assists and four steals in Game 2.

"Everyone knows the kind of competitor Manu is. He hasn't really played in a while so I was real impressed," Spurs coach Gregg Popovich said.

Tim Duncan and Richard Jefferson both scored 16 points with Duncan grabbing 10 rebounds. Tony Parker had 12 rebounds and seven assists, including a couple of big passes that led to critical baskets in the fourth quarter.

Zach Randolph, fresh off signing a multi-year contract extension Wednesday, was limited to 11 points on 5-of-14 shooting. Sam Young led the way with 17 points for the Grizzlies, who were limited to 39.8 percent shooting from the field. That's a sharp contrast to the 55.2 percent from Sunday's victory.

Marc Gasol had 12 points and a playoff team-record 17 rebounds in defeat.

Game 3 is scheduled for Saturday night in Memphis.

A pair of Gasol free throws cut Memphis' deficit to 82-79 with 4:15 remaining, After Mike Conley missed a jumper for the Grizzlies, Parker drove into the lane and delivered a sharp pass to Jefferson, who hit a three from the right corner.

Tony Allen had a tip-in dunk the next trip down the floor, but Parker continued to play a crucial role, ducking inside before passing to Antonio McDyess for a layup and an 87-81 cushion with 2:44 remaining. Ginobili and McDyess each went 1-of-2 from the charity stripe for an eight-point lead.

Memphis rallied for the next six points, and Young's three-ball from the right corner with 14.4 seconds left made it a one-possession game. George Hill, though, made two free throws to seal the outcome.

"They were very physical and Manu attacked every time he put the ball on the floor," Grizzlies coach Lionel Hollins said. "Regardless of what they did, I thought our team battled. We made too many mistakes on offense, took too many quick shots."

A back-and-forth first quarter yielded a 17-17 tie after 12 minutes. Memphis scored seven in a row in the second for a 44-38 lead and the Grizzlies carried a 44-41 edge to the half.

The Grizzlies, who posted their first-ever playoff win on Sunday, were up 48-45 following a Conley layup with 9:40 left in the third. But the Spurs responded with 11 straight points, capped by a Ginobili's steal and dunk with 6:18 left in the period.

"[The elbow] didn't bother me much. The brace is a bulky thing," Ginobili said. "It was a little uncomfortable, but I did okay, took some risks, went for steals and rebounds. Overall I felt better than expected."

The Spurs, who didn't trail the rest of the game, were up 66-65 going to the fourth.

"He's a very tough guy to guard and tough guy to scheme for," Conley said of Ginobili. "He uses his body well and it's tough to stop him."

Game Notes

The Spurs turned the ball over 19 times, but it led to only 13 Memphis points...The Grizzlies were 3-of-14 from three-point range...Allen had 15 points and Conley 13...Hill had 16 points...Memphis had a team playoff-record 47 rebounds.