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Conley, Grizzlies hold off Magic

Feb 1, 2011 - 6:53 AM Memphis, TN (Sports Network) - Mike Conley scored 26 points and dished out 11 assists as Memphis staved off Orlando's fourth quarter comeback to win 100-97 at FedEx Forum.

Marc Gasol chipped in with 19 points and eight rebounds for the Grizzlies, who are over the .500 mark (25-24) for the first time since the third game of the season. Greivis Vasquez added 14 points while Rudy Gay notched 13 points and seven boards in the win.

Zach Randolph, who had 10 points and nine boards, was one rebound away from his 15th straight double-double for the victors.

Dwight Howard had 25 points and 14 rebounds while Jason Richardson scored 18 for the Magic, who have lost two of three and three of five overall. Hedo Turkoglu and Brandon Bass each had 13 points in the losing effort. Bass injured his left leg late in the third quarter.

"He's a big guy and one of the best in the league," Gasol said of Howard.

The Magic made it a tight game during the final quarter thanks to a 12-0 run started by Gilbert Arenas' layup just a minute and a half in. Arenas then hit a jumper with 7 1/2 left to conclude the run and make it an 88-86 game.

The Grizzlies responded with the next four points to claim a six-point lead. The edge was back down to two points, 96-94, with 2 1/2 minutes left following Howard's reverse layup.

It remained a two-point contest until Arenas made 1-of-2 from the free throw line with 39 ticks left.

Down 98-97 with 20 seconds left, however, Turkoglu's three-pointer was off the mark and Conley was fouled after grabbing the loose ball.

Howard, showing his frustration, received a technical foul and Randolph made the resulting free throw. Conley, though, just made 1-of-2 of his foul shots to give the Magic hope, trailing 100-97 with 5.5 seconds left on the clock.

However, Richardson's desperation three with time running out was way off mark.

"We'll (defend) at times. Right now, we're not ready to contend because we don't defend hard enough for long enough," Magic head coach Stan Van Gundy said. "We're going to see if over the next 10 1/2 weeks if it will change. If it does then we have a chance to be as good as anybody and if it doesn't then we don't. It's pretty simple to me."

Orlando jumped out to score the game's first seven points and held onto a 28- 21 lead after a 63.2 shooting performance in the first quarter. The Magic had a 58-54 lead at intermission.

Orlando held onto a slight lead early in the third quarter, however, Conley's three-pointer with 7:22 to go sparked a nine-point burst by Memphis to go up 76-66.

The hosts' edge grew 12, 86-74, at the end of the third frame.

Game Notes

Memphis' O.J. Mayo did not play because he is serving a 10-game suspension for violating the NBA's Anti-Drug program...Orlando's J.J. Redick did not play because of a shoulder injury...The Magic hold a 17-13 advantage in the overall series but have a losing road record (6-9) against Memphis...Lionel Hollins surpassed Mike Fratello as the team's all-time leader in coaching victories (96 wins)...Arenas finished with 10 points, while Ryan Anderson provided 10 points and seven boards in the loss...Sam Young chipped in 10 points for the victors.