Randolph leads way with 31 points, 18 rebounds as Grizzlies rally past Bulls 105-96

Grizzlies rally past Bulls, 105-96

CHICAGO — Zach Randolph scored 31 points and grabbed 18 rebounds, and the Memphis Grizzlies rallied from a big first-half deficit to beat the Chicago Bulls 105-96 on Thursday night.

After trailing by 17 in the second quarter, the Grizzlies tied it in the third and finally took control with an 8-0 run late in the fourth that gave them a 97-90 lead.

O.J. Mayo scored 10 of his 20 points in the final quarter. Rudy Gay finished with 17 points as the Grizzlies extended their franchise-record road win streak to six and sent Chicago to its third straight loss.

The Bulls wasted solid performances by Luol Deng (23 points) and Derrick Rose (20 points), who have been playing with sore knees. That didn’t stop Rose, who banged one knee in each of the previous two games, from driving for a poster-worthy right-handed dunk over Randolph in the third quarter.

Randolph, however, got the last word. He finished two points shy of his season high and started the decisive run with a free throw that tied it at 90 with just over five minutes left.

Marc Gasol (12 points) added a three-point play on a feed from Conley and had a chance for another one with 4:01 left. He missed the free throw, Gay grabbed the rebound and Mayo put it in to make it a seven-point game with 3:50 left.

A day after leading rebounder Joakim Noah was sidelined for three weeks because of plantar fasciitis in his left foot, the Bulls appeared to be in decent shape with a 49-32 lead with about five minutes left in the second quarter.

They were still looking good in the third even after watching it dwindle to four.

Rose’s big dunk got the lead back up to nine about four minutes into the quarter, and the Bulls were up 65-55 before it all went away.

The Grizzlies ran off 10 straight, tying it on Conley’s driving layup with 4:33 left in the quarter before Chicago called time, and they briefly went ahead midway through the fourth on a runner by Conley that made it 89-87. The Bulls’ Kirk Hinrich answered with a 3-pointer before the Grizzlies went ahead for good.

NOTES: Grizzlies coach Lionel Hollins had a tough time pinpointing why his team has been winning on the road while dropping seven straight at home, saying, “Can’t spell it out. Just play differently.” One explanation: a tough home schedule. They’ve fallen to Houston, Atlanta, Phoenix, Miami, the Los Angeles Lakers, Charlotte and Portland. Their road streak includes wins over New Jersey, Washington and New York. … The home team had won nine straight in this series. … Blackhawks star and U.S. Olympic silver medalist Patrick Kane got a nice ovation when he was shown seated at courtside late in the first quarter.