Jones leads Grizzlies past Magic

The Grizzlies earned their first victory of the young season by knocking down 10-of-22 shots from three-point range, with Jones hitting 5-of-10. The Magic, which lost their second in a row to start the year, went just 1-of-10 from beyond the arc.

Damon Stoudamire contributed 17 points for Memphis, which rebounded from Wednesday’s 97-78 home loss to Miami.

Steve Francis amassed 22 points and seven assists while Dwight Howard had 16 points in defeat.

Memphis trailed 48-46 three minutes into the second half before embarking on an 8-0 run to move in front. Shane Battier ignited the spurt with a three- pointer and Jones ended it when he was fouled after converting a layup with 7:37 left in the third quarter. He sunk the subsequent free-throw attempt for a 54-48 Grizzlies’ lead.

Orlando answered with five consecutive points to close within one, but Battier made a three-point play and Jones followed with a trey to spark a 9-2 rally which put Memphis ahead 63-54 with two minutes to go in the period.

The Magic would fight back and pulled to within 70-68 on Jameer Nelson’s steal and layup with 10:22 left to play. Orlando was down by three midway through the fourth quarter before Memphis reeled off nine of the next 11 points, highlighted by a clutch triple by Jones, to go up 85-76 with less than three minutes to go.

Orlando would get as close as five points down, 88-83, when Howard hit two foul shots with 31 seconds left, but four consecutive free throws by Stoudamire and Jones in the final moments sealed the win.

The Magic started the game strong, as Orlando hit five of its initial seven shots and opened out to a quick 10-4 lead, with Francis producing the first six points. However, a 7-0 run featuring Lorenzen Wright’s three-point play and capped by Stoudamire’s fast break layup would later put Memphis up 19-16 with 5:20 remaining in the first quarter.

Orlando would forge back ahead, but Mike Miller drained a three-pointer in the final seconds of the period and Bobby Jackson buried a jumper at the buzzer to give the Grizzlies a 26-22 edge after the first 12 minutes.

The game remained tight throughout the second quarter, but Memphis began to assert control late in the first half. Gasol threw down a dunk off a Stoudamire steal, then drove the lane and scored on the Grizzlies’ next trip down the court for a 41-38 advantage with under 30 seconds left. However, Hedo Turkoglu made a baseline runner with time winding down to bring Orlando within three points at the break.

The Magic outscored Memphis 8-2 to begin the third quarter to grab a 48-46 lead, their last of the night.

Game Notes

Battier needed eight stitches to close a cut on his head late in the third quarter but returned to action...Orlando’s Pat Garrity was placed on the inactive list prior to the game with a knee injury, with center Mario Kasun dressing in his place...The Magic were also without guard Keyon Dooling, who missed his second straight contest with an injured heel...Magic head coach Bob Hill was an assistant under Grizzlies’ head man Mike Fratello from 1986-90 when Fratello was in charge of the Atlanta Hawks...Orlando is off to its first 0-2 start since the 1990-91 campaign...Memphis has now won six of the last seven meetings between the clubs.