Gasol leads hot Memphis past struggling Knicks

Mike Miller chipped in 15 points while Lorenzen Wright had 12 along with nine rebounds for the Grizzlies, who led the hapless Knicks practically from the opening whistle.

Eddy Curry compiled 19 points and 10 rebounds in the loss, New York’s fourth in a row. Steve Francis finished with 11 points and seven assists in defeat.

"It’s extremely frustrating and disappointing," said Knicks forward Malik Rose, whose team’s 19 wins are tied with Charlotte for the fewest in the league. "This is embarrassing for the franchise, this is embarrassing for each and every one of us in the locker room."

Up 22-18 after one quarter, Memphis dominated the second to build a sizeable lead at the half.

The Grizzlies outscored the Knicks 16-4 over the first eight minutes of the period to take control. Wright had six points during the run, including two free throws which put Memphis up 38-22 with 4:16 remaining before intermission.

Behind 21 points from Gasol, the Grizzlies held a cushy 47-31 advantage at the break.

"The thing we wanted to do is jump on them quick," said Gasol. "When a team is not having a good year, when you jump on them early and hit them first it’s hard for them to get back up."

New York got within 49-36 after a layup and free throw by Curry early in the second half, but Memphis scored the next five points and were never threatened thereafter.

Back-to-back three-pointers from Miller pushed the Grizzlies’ lead to 64-40 with 3:48 left in the third quarter and Memphis took a 70-48 advantage into the final 12 minutes.

Game Notes

Memphis also strung together six straight wins from November 25 to December 6...Rookie David Lee pulled down 10 rebounds for New York, which finished the game with a 50-37 advantage on the boards...Curry ended 8-of-10 from the field...The Grizzlies swept the season series, having beaten the Knicks 101-99 in Memphis on March 1...New York has dropped seven of its last nine at home.