Grizzlies put postseason aspirations on line at New Orleans

The Memphis Grizzlies resume their pursuit of a playoff spot tonight against the lowly New Orleans Hornets in the Big Easy.

Memphis is seeded fifth in the Western Conference, sitting 1 1/2 games behind the Los Angeles Clippers and 1 1/2 games ahead of the defending champion Dallas Mavericks with seven contests to play.

The Grizzlies will hit the road for two straight games against the Hornets and Minnesota Timberwolves, and are 13-17 away from Beale Street. They are coming off Saturday's 103-98 victory over the playoff-hungry Utah Jazz in which Rudy Gay scored a game-high 26 points to go with 12 rebounds.

O.J. Mayo finished with 20 points -- 17 in the final 12 minutes -- and Marc Gasol added 17 points and nine rebounds for the Grizzlies, who have won five of six and eight of their last 10 games.

"Obviously, it makes it more of a playoff atmosphere when teams are playing for something, basically for seeding or to get into the playoffs when they play like that," said Gay.

Mike Conley also had 17 points for Memphis.

New Orleans will conclude a five-game homestand Sunday and has won four of its last six games, including Friday's 96-85 triumph versus the Jazz.

Eric Gordon had 25 points and six assists, while Chris Kaman added 19 points for New Orleans, which is 3-1 on the residency and 9-22 at home.

"I love those situations," Gordon said after throwing a wrench in Utah's postseason plans. "That's what I'm here for, to help the team win, and that's what I try to do. I'm looking forward to the rest of these games this season and see what can happen for me being here in the future."

Earlier Friday, NBA Commissioner David Stern announced that New Orleans Saints owner Tom Benson bought the Hornets from the NBA for more than $300 million.

New Orleans has lost the first two meetings with Memphis this season and six of the previous eight encounters in this series. The Hornets, though, have won 10 of the last 13 matchups in the Big Easy.