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GAME FLOW
VANCOUVER, British Columbia (AP) _ Shareef Abdur-Rahim and
Michael Dickerson scored 24 points apiece as the Vancouver
Grizzlies came back from a 23-point deficit to defeat the New
Jersey Nets 97-86 on Monday night. It was the biggest comeback in franchise history, besting an
18-point comeback over Houston in April, 2000. The Nets scored 59 first-half points but had only 27 in the
third and fourth quarters as Vancouver went on a 21-0 run to turn
the game around. Damon Jones scored 15 points off the bench for Vancouver, while
Mike Bibby had 14 points and 12 assists. Kenyon Martin had 19 points and nine rebounds for New Jersey
while Stephon Marbury had 19 points and 11 assists. The Nets
dropped their fifth straight on their five-game road trip. The Grizzlies showed some life in the third quarter after
trailing throughout the first half. Vancouver outscored the Nets
25-13 in the quarter to pull within seven after three, 72-65. The Nets didn't score their first points of the fourth quarter
until 5:48 remained. It was ugly at the beginning for Vancouver. The Nets hit 13
shots in a row in the first quarter on their way to a 35-14 lead
after one. The crowd started voicing their displeasure after
Martin's third dunk of the quarter with 1:40 left. New Jersey kept it up in the second quarter and led 59-40 at the
half thanks to 63.9 percent shooting. Vancouver shot 16-of-34 (47.1
percent). Notes: Nets guard Lucious Harris bruised his left thigh in the
first half and did not return. ... Nets guard Kendall Gill, who
missed Saturday's game at Seattle with tendinitis in his right
knee, was not with the team. He returned home Saturday to have his
knee re-examined. ... Grizzlies owner Michael Heisley addressed the
media before the game, admitting the team lacks chemistry but will
only make a trade if Vancouver gets equal value back. When asked
what message it would send to the fans if a trade isn't made before
the deadline, Heisley said, "I think the fans would be
disappointed in us. But if I went out and traded Shareef and Bibby
and all I got back was Joe Shmoe, I think the fans would be even
more disappointed in us. I'm in a pretty tough spot right now."
... The Grizzlies lost their three previous games by a combined 87
points, the highest three-game margin of defeat in team history.
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