Wallace View – Bucks 106, Grizzlies 96

MILWAUKEE – Five seasons ago, Marc Gasol was the NBA’s defensive player of the year and has since maintained his reputation as one of the best two-way centers in the league

The Bucks were deadset on making Gasol a target for attack. And they relentlessly executed their plan to perfection in Saturday’s 106-96 victory over the Grizzlies at the BMO Bradley Center. Memphis’ franchise center fouled out in the final seconds and couldn’t stop the Bucks from shredding the Grizzlies’ defense by scoring a combined 77 points in the paint and from the free-throw line.

Gasol is not solely responsible for his team’s defensive breakdowns that have caused the Grizzlies to sputter off to a 4-5 start this season. But if Memphis is dedicated to reversing some disturbing trends that are developing this season, Gasol knows that the effort to turn things around starts at center.

“We have to be patient with this process, but it’s definitely tough,” Gasol said. “It starts with each one of us looking in the mirror and knowing that we have to do better. What are we out here practicing for two hours for if we’re not going to go out and execute what we should be doing defensively?”

It would be an exaggeration to suggest Gasol was venting after the Grizzlies lost on the first stop of a four-game road trip. But it was clear to see his level of concern is rising and his level of patience just might be wearing a bit thin as the Grizzlies continue to sort through an assortment of issues that have gotten coach David Fizdale’s first season in Memphis off to a rocky start. On Saturday, the Grizzlies couldn’t keep the Bucks’ long, versatile and athletic wings out of the paint or prevent them from slashing along the baseline to score on backdoor cuts to the basket.

Gasol’s frustrations stemmed from the Grizzlies implementing a full game plan to prevent the Bucks from dominating in the lane, but the NBA’s top scoring team in the paint did so anyway.

“Well, the bottom line is our defense was just not there,” Fizdale said after the Bucks shot 70.4 percent from the field in the second half. “We just didn’t move our feet, we didn’t take the challenge one-on-one, we didn’t sprint back and really load up. We’ll keep working at it and get better at it.”

The Grizzlies are ranked in the bottom half of the league in opponent field-goal shooting percentage (.459) and were 28th among 30 teams in opponent free-throw attempts per game (29.1) coming out of Saturday’s game. Although Memphis is struggling to find consistency on offense as well, it’s the defense that has defined the team’s identity the past several years and registers as the primary concern on a trip that continues with games against the Jazz, Clippers and Mavericks.

“If we can’t get stops consistently down the stretch, it’s going to be hard to win games,” Gasol said. “We’ve got to trust the guy that’s next to us, the coverage, the scheme. We’ve got to communicate better. It’s everybody’s job to keep working at it and keep building that chemistry defensively.”

The very tone the Bucks set at the start of the game, when they scored 11 of the first 13 points, was reestablished at the end. That’s when Milwaukee held the Grizzlies scoreless the rest of the way after Chandler Parsons’ three-pointer made it 99-96 with 2:56 remaining in the game. The Bucks scored the final seven points on three free-throws and two layups after breaking down the Grizzlies’ defense.

Vince Carter attacked the paint most of the night, but he added another turn-back-the-clock moment when he sliced between Giannis Antetokounmpo and Greg Monroe from the right wing to swoop in for a dunk. The play brought the Grizzlies to within 24-23 at the 10:59 mark of the second quarter and forced Bucks coach Jason Kidd, a former teammate of Carter’s with the Nets, to call a timeout.

Vince Carter. After becoming the oldest player since Michael Jordan to score 20 points in a game during Tuesday’s win over Denver, the 39-year-old Carter followed that with 17 points on 7-of-11 shooting to go with two assists and a steal against the Bucks. Carter is shooting 62.5 percent from the field in his last two games. He entered the season expected to be a spot-duty player who would be used in a specialist role. But a strong case can be made that Carter is the Grizzlies’ third-best player on a given night.

The Grizzlies entered the game averaging 15.9 turnovers, but committed just 13 in Saturday’s loss. The problem was the Bucks essentially capitalized off every one of them, converting those miscues into 24 points. Four of those turnovers came in the fourth quarter, when possessions were at a premium as the Grizzlies attempted to battle all the way back from a 14-point deficit. The upside is that the Grizzlies may have found a closing lineup that Fizdale can trust right now. When Memphis rallied to within 96-93 with 2:56 left, they used a lineup of Gasol, Carter, Mike Conley, Chandler Parsons and Zach Randolph. But the rally fizzled when Parsons got his shot rejected by Giannis Antetokounmpo, and both Conley and Gasol had costly turnovers in the following possessions.

With Tony Allen sitting out his second consecutive game with a sore groin and the Bucks playing a perimeter-based lineup, the Grizzlies tweaked their bench rotation to add defensive guard help. That led Fizdale to use both Andrew Harrison and Wade Baldwin IV, although he previously alternated the rookie point guards with the second unit in recent games. Both struggled on both ends of the court and combined to shoot 2-of-6, with three turnovers, three assists and five fouls. Allen has missed five of nine games, including the first three of the season with knee soreness. “I’m really missing him,” Fizdale said of Allen, who is day-to-day. “When you have a First-Team defender out, that’s a big blow. He’s been working his tail off, leading from the sidelines. It will be a welcomed return when we get him back.”

Grizzlies fall short in Milwaukee

Grizzlies vs. Utah Jazz at Vivint SmartHome Arena, 8:00 pm (TV: Grizzlies Live! Pregame Show FOX Sports Southeast 7:30 p.m./Radio: Grizzlies Pregame Show 92.9 FM ESPN, 7:30 p.m.) 

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