Mason's shot lifts Bucks past Grizzlies
Updated: 2007-11-15 14:11
MILWAUKEE - Desmond Mason hit a 14-foot jumper with 13.6 seconds left, and Memphis' Pau Gasol missed a tying 3-pointer, giving the Milwaukee Bucks a 102-99 victory over the Grizzlies on Wednesday night.
 Memphis Grizzlies forward Pau Gasol (16), of Spain, drives to the basket against Milwaukee Bucks center Yi Jianlian (9) of China, during the first half of an NBA basketball game Wednesday, Nov. 14, 2007, in Milwaukee. [Agencies] |
Michael Redd scored 31 points, and Andrew Bogut had 23 points and 12 rebounds to help Milwaukee overcome a bad early shooting effort.
The Bucks, who have won all three of their home games but lost all four on the road, built an 11-point lead in the fourth quarter.
But the Grizzlies refused to go away, nearly tying it when Mike Miller missed the second of two free throws with 2.5 seconds to play. Gasol, who had 16 points, missed a 3-pointer from the right corner as time expired that would have tied the game.
Memphis whittled the Bucks' big lead to 96-95 with just under 2 minutes to play. Redd hit two free throws to make it 98-95, but Rudy Gay, who had 26 points, hit a 3-pointer to tie it at 98 with 34 seconds left.
On the Bucks' next possession, Mo Williams set a screen for Mason, who hit the jumper over Darko Milicic to give the Bucks a 100-98 lead.
Williams then stripped Kyle Lowry on his drive and was fouled after the steal.
Williams added two free throws to make it 102-98, setting up the final sequence.
Miller, who finished with 17 points, was fouled by Bogut, and made a free throw before Gasol's desperation miss. Williams finished with 10 points and 12 assists, while Mason had 15 points.
Memphis, fresh off a big victory against Houston at home, looked to have its first two-game winning streak this year after it took them 73 games to reach that mark last season.
But the Grizzlies couldn't capitalize even though the Bucks, who came in shooting 46.8 percent at home, managed 34.6 percent in the first half, including a 4-of-13 effort by Redd.
Gasol, recently criticized by coach Marc Iavaroni for taking plays off, got a tongue lashing just before the half for arguing a no-call with officials instead of running back down to play defense.
He responded early in the third quarter and the rest of the Grizzlies followed after getting a pair of easy baskets, the second off a pretty feed by Milicic, who finished with 10 points and 13 rebounds.
A few moments later Milicic got free for a dunk, and Gasol fed Damon Stoudamire for a 20-footer. Gay added a jumper and Stoudamire's steal and layup capped an 8-0 run gave Memphis its largest lead 57-53 midway through the quarter.
That's when Redd caught fire.
He hit his first five shots of the second half and went 7-of-10 from the field.
Redd added a 3-pointer to push the Bucks' lead to 78-71 going into the fourth, which they would stretch to 11 before the Grizzlies came roaring back.
Bogut, who had already faced a bevy of NBA stars this season including Dwight Howard, Ben Wallace, Chris Bosh, Yao Ming and Tim Duncan, outplayed Gasol, and rookie Yi Jianlian had six points and 13 rebounds to help his frontcourt mate.
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