Hornets 91, Grizzlies 84

Just when the Grizzlies appeared to be rolling, they ran into the New Orleans Hornets again. The Hornets remain the only team to beat the Grizzlies in the past two weeks, handing them their first loss in five games on Tuesday 91-84.

As in most of their recent games, the Grizzlies (9-16) fell behind early, only to rally. They put together a third-quarter run and clamped down on the Hornets’ shooters in the second half. The Hornets (14-7) shot 41 percent for the game but only 37 percent in the second half. They warmed up just in time to score the final seven points of the game after eight lead changes and six ties in the fourth quarter. They won a low-scoring third quarter 18-12.

Rudy Gay led the Grizzlies with 28 points while O.J. Mayo added 20. David West and Chris Paul each scored 18 for the Hornets.

The Grizzlies and Hornets engaged in a physical battle from start to finish. There were plenty of fouls on both ends of the floor and dicey situations involving players on nearly every play. However, the Hornets earned a significant advantage at the free throw line by being more aggressive on offense, and that proved to be the difference in the game. They knocked down 29-of-38 attempts at the line while the Grizzlies made only 14-of-19.

The Grizzlies outshot and outrebounded the Hornets, but they couldn’t overcome their disadvantage at the line or their 19 turnovers. In order for their offense to be more efficient they have to have better clock management and better ball-handling. They have to make better and wiser passes and have a plan instead of just throwing the ball around for 20 seconds. It’s a mystery to me why they still haven’t solved the clock issue. I guess by this point Coach Iavaroni has decided he has more important things to do. I would think that would be one of the first things that would jump off the game film.

To his credit, Iavaroni has been more fiery and energetic lately, which I think had to happen for this team to improve. They played a legitimate championship contender on Tuesday and pushed them to the limit. Now they need to bounce back and start on another win streak on Friday against Charlotte, which is currently fourth in the Southeast Division with an 8-18 record.