76ers Tie NBA Worst With 0-18 Start After Loss To Grizzlies
MEMPHIS, Tenn. (AP) — Zach Randolph had 17 points and 11 rebounds to lead the Memphis Grizzlies to a 92-84 victory over Philadelphia on Sunday, sending the 76ers to their record-tying 18th straight loss to start the season.
The Sixers have lost an NBA-record 28 consecutive games dating to last season and at 0-18 matched the New Jersey Nets' start in 2009-10.
Mike Conley led the Grizzlies with 20 points, while Matt Barnes and Jeff Green finished with 13 apiece as Memphis won for the seventh time in the last nine.
Isaiah Canaan led the Sixers with 16 points, while Robert Covington and Hollis Thompson scored 12 points apiece. Jerami Grant finished with 11 points.
The Sixers led 76-71 with 7:38 remaining and Memphis fans were booing their team. But the Grizzlies went on a 15-1 run to retake control of the game, with Randolph scoring eight points in the rally.
Neither team took care of the basketball, with Memphis committing a season-high 26 turnovers and Philadelphia having 27.
The Sixers, as they've done in recent games, were competitive, especially because Memphis was struggling. Philadelphia held a four-point lead late in the third period, and Thompson's 3-pointer in the closing seconds gave Philadelphia a 67-64 lead entering the fourth.
Philadelphia overtook Memphis on 3-point shooting, going 7 of 11 in the third. Grant and Thompson had eight points apiece to lead the Sixers' charge.
The lead would extend to 69-64 early in the fourth, leading to Memphis coach Dave Joerger calling timeout and the boos increasing.
From there, Memphis showed its most focus of the night, pulling away down the stretch.
The first half was a sloppy affair with neither team shooting well and dealing with plenty of turnovers. Memphis was at 35 percent shooting, while the Sixers struggled to 33 percent, including 3 of 16 from 3-point range.
The Sixers had 13 turnovers to 12 for Memphis.
TIP-INS:
76ers: Ended a six-game road trip that went from Charlotte to Miami, up to Minnesota, across to Boston, down to Houston and finally in Memphis. .F/C Nerlens Noel missed his second straight game with right knee soreness. . The Sixers missed their first nine shots and converted 22 percent in the first quarter. .The Sixers' 31 first-half points were the lowest by a Memphis opponent since Indiana scored 30 on March 22, 2014. .The Sixers' last win was 99-85 over the Denver Nuggets on March 25.
Grizzlies: Randolph returned to action after missing five games with right knee soreness. . Jeff Green made his 37th consecutive free throw in the first half, breaking Marc Gasol's record of 36 set six days ago. Prior to Gasol, the mark was held by Anthony Peeler with 35, set 18 years and eight months earlier.
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Sixers: Host Los Angeles Lakers on Tuesday
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