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Gasol leads Grizzlies over playoff-bound Spurs

Apr 17, 2007 - 4:18 AM MEMPHIS, Tennessee (Ticker) -- Pau Gasol helped the Memphis Grizzlies end a seven-game skid to the San Antonio Spurs.

Gasol scored 25 points, grabbed 14 rebounds and had six assists as the Grizzlies earned just their second winning streak of the season with a 101-91 victory over the Spurs.

The 7-footer threw down an emphatic baseline jam to spark an 8-2 run that ended the game and held off a late charge by San Antonio.

James White scored 17 and Matt Bonner added 10 and 10 rebounds for San Antonio, which is locked into the No. 3 seed in the Western Conference.

Memphis led most of the way and was ahead by 21 in the fourth quarter against a Spurs team that rested their starters in preparation for the playoffs.

"It's good mentally more than physically," Spurs coach Gregg Popovich said. "This late in the season, playing or not playing isn't a huge deal. But mentally, it's good for them to not have to focus for a night or think about basketball very much.

"It's also good for the bench guys and everybody else to work on some things and get an opportunity to play. So it worked out well."

San Antonio's reserves went on an 18-2 spurt to pull within seven points at 91-86 with 3:19 left. But the Grizzlies held them off to match their longest winning streak of the year.

Memphis won back-to-back games for the first time since March 29.

"The team has not quit at all. They didn't quit when we had those losing streaks," coach Tony Barone said. "When we had those six games on the West Coast, they could have thrown in the towel and they didn't. They're really earned some respect."

"It's two wins where they (the fans) can be proud of us," said Dahntay Jones, who added 16 points. "We can go out on a good note, showing them that we're still working hard and trying to win games."

Memphis held a 56-43 lead at the half as Gasol scored 20 points, including a 43-footer as time ran out in the second period.

A 3-pointer from Chucky Atkins made it a 20-point margin for the Grizzlies, who held a 82-66 lead after three quarters.

Memphis was playing without Damon Stoudamire and Mike Miller due to knee injuries, and Rudy Gay left in the second quarter after aggravating an ankle injury.