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RECAP
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BOX SCORE
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GAME FLOW
VANCOUVER, British Columbia (AP) -- All season long, the Vancouver Grizzlies had heard about the new attention being paid to defense this season by the Sacramento Kings.
|  | | Peja Stojakovic contributed 21 points and eight rebounds to the Kings' winning effort. |
For 46 minutes Friday night, they wondered what the fuss was
about. They found out in the final two minutes of a 95-93 loss.
The Kings trailed 93-87 with 2:08 left but didn't allow the Grizzlies to score again. Bobby Jackson capped a 8-0 run with a running layup with 1:05 left, enabling the Kings to improve their
Western Conference-leading record to 18-7.
It's the best season start for the Kings since the 1951-52 season when the club was known as the Rochester Royals.
Defense was never been known as a strong point of the Kings in
the two previous seasons under coach Rick Adelman, but it was
evident down the stretch against Vancouver.
To Chris Webber, who led Sacramento with 33 points, having
newcomers Jackson and Doug Christie in the lineup this season makes
a major difference.
"Look at the way we get stops with those two guys in there,"
said Webber. "You can be all flashy (offensively) all you want,
but you know late in the game you're going to get stops with those
guys in there."
Jackson and Christie held the Vancouver backcourt of Mike Bibby
and Michael Dickerson to six points on 1-of-6 shooting from the
floor in the fourth quarter. Othella Harrington led Vancouver with
24 points and a career-high 20 rebounds.
All five Vancouver starters were in double figures offensively,
one reason why Adelman thought his team was fortunate to win.
"We got away with one tonight," Adelman said. "I said in a
timeout with six minutes left that there's an eternity left. We
hadn't been getting any stops to that point. Suddenly we made shots
and they missed shots."
The loss was typical for the Grizzlies, who continue to have
major difficulty closing out an opponent when they have a lead.
Vancouver missed 12 of its final 13 field goal attempts and was
tentative offensively down the stretch.
Webber was the dominant player on the floor in the first half,
scoring 18 points on 9-of-16 shooting from the field. His
Sacramento teammates, however, were marginal in the early going,
and as a result the Kings only held a 46-44 edge at halftime.
The Grizzlies held a 23-22 lead after an opening quarter in
which Shareef Abdur-Rahim took only one shot and did not score
despite playing the entire period.
Harrington shut down Webber in the third quarter, and when the
Vancouver forward chipped in with 13 points and seven boards in the
period, the Grizzlies were able to establish a 73-68 edge heading
into the fourth.
The Grizzlies stretched their lead to 77-68 early in the final
quarter, and when Mike Bibby hit a 3-pointer with 2:08 left, the
Grizzlies had a six-point edge. Bibby had a season-high 13 assists
for Vancouver but couldn't find a teammate to score the rest of the
way.
Game notes
In Webber and Abdur-Rahim of Vancouver, the game featured
two of the six players in the league averaging more than 20 points
and 10 rebounds this season. Also in the 20-10 club: Antoine Walker
of Boston, Antonio McDyess of Denver, Minnesota's Kevin Garnett and
Shaquille O'Neal of the Los Angeles Lakers... Webber's 32 field
goal attempts was the most by a Vancouver opponent this season. ...
Grant Long (sprained thumb) sat out his second straight for
Vancouver, while Scot Pollard of the Kings (strained ankle) also
sat out his second in a row for the Kings ... The Grizzlies next
play host to Phoenix on Tuesday in a game to be broadcast on TBS,
marking only the fourth time in six seasons the club will be seen
nationally in the U.S.
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ALSO SEE
NBA Scoreboard
Sacramento Clubhouse
Vancouver Clubhouse
RECAPS
Utah 109
Indiana 101
New York 91
Philadelphia 71
Atlanta 78
Toronto 72
Miami 103
Cleveland 95
LA Lakers 108
Dallas 103
Charlotte 83
Minnesota 74
San Antonio 105
Golden State 87
Denver 116
Portland 96
Seattle 107
Washington 87
Sacramento 95
Vancouver 93
FROM
ATHLETESDIRECT
Mike Bibby Official Site
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