http://www.iht.com/articles/ap/2007/11/ ... ilicic.php Milicic shines as Grizzlies beat Rockets 105-99
The Associated Press
Wednesday, November 14, 2007
MEMPHIS, Tennessee: Darko Milicic was a force on defense, and even brought some offense to the table.
Milicic scored 20 points and hounded Houston's Yao Ming, Pau Gasol had 26, and the Memphis Grizzlies beat the Houston Rockets 105-96 in the NBA on Tuesday.
"I used to play offense before I came here," Milicic said with a laugh. "Then I became a defensive (player)."
His contributions on Tuesday were on both ends of the floor. Milicic was 9-of-14 from the floor, and while Yao scored 22 points, he had to work for them.
"You can't do much about a guy like (Yao), as tall as he is and with the skills he has," Milicic said. "I was just trying to front him, and when he got the ball down low, trying to make it difficult for him."
"We played really well as a combo, and (Milicic) played a real good game offensively and defensively on Yao. I thought his effort was really good," Gasol said. "...When you have a threat inside other than myself, then the defense has to adjust to it. He made a presence of himself early on."
Free throws were the difference in the game, as Memphis connected on eight straight in the final two minutes after Houston tied the game at 97. Memphis scored 34 points from the line, compared to 17 for the Rockets, who had their 3-game winning streak snapped.
"We scored 98, and that's OK for us," Yao said. "But when you let them score 105, we had problems on defense. I didn't guard Darko Milicic well in the post, and Pau Gasol got 17 free throws. Those are the keys right there."