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Grizzlies hope to snap skid at Knicks

Jan 23, 2009 - 11:19 AM Memphis (11-30) at New York (17-24) 7:30 p.m. EST

NEW YORK (Ticker) -- The Memphis Grizzlies are looking for any way to break out of their current funk and are hoping a coaching change will do the trick.

After firing coach Marc Iavaroni on Thursday, the Grizzlies look to snap a seven-game slide when they face the New York Knicks on Friday.

Memphis has lost 15 of its last 17 games and was 33-90 under Iavaroni, which led to his firing.

According to the Memphis Commercial Appeal,assistant Johnny Davis will coach the team against the Knicks and on Saturday against the New Jersey Nets. The paper says that Milwaukee Bucks assistant Lionel Hollins will be named the team's coach over the weekend and will add former Philadelphia head coach Maurice Cheeks and former Los Angeles Clippers coach Barry Hecker as his assistants.

Memphis is the second-lowest scoring team in the NBA at 93 points per game and has been even worse of late, scoring just under 86 points per game during this skid.

It lost, 101-86, at Charlotte on Wednesday and were held to 61 field-goal attempts. Rudy Gay broke out of a slump with 26 points but no one else managed more than 13 and only four players reached double figures.

New York surrenders 106.3 points per game - the fourth most in the NBA - and are coming off a 114-109 win over the Phoenix Suns on Wednesday.

The Knicks allowed the Suns to shoot 47 percent but put six players in double figures. David Lee collected 25 points and 16 rebounds and Nate Robinson came off the bench to add 20.

New York ran away with the first meeting between the teams, 132-103, on November 12.