Tip-off: Tuesday, 8:05 p.m. ET
Line: Memphis -5.5, Total: 181

The Knicks take on the Grizzlies in Memphis Tuesday night with both teams trying to crawl back into their conferences respective playoff pictures.

New York entered the All-Star break having lost two straight games and five of its past six contests (SU and ATS). In the most recent two games, the Knicks defense really struggled as they allowed 109.0 PPG on 51% FG to their opponents. The Grizzlies, on the other hand, entered the break having won two straight games and 14 of their past 18 contests (10-8 ATS). They have allowed more than 95 points just once in the past 16 games, and over the past four contests, they are giving up only 84.3 PPG on 42.2% FG. While New York has been an average road wager at 11-11 ATS (8-14 SU), Memphis has been terrible at home, going 10-18 ATS (14-14 SU), which is the worst rate among all Western Conference squads. These two teams last met on Dec. 21 when the Grizzlies defeated the Knicks 95-87 in Madison Square Garden, making them 3-1 (SU and ATS) in their past four meetings with the Knicks. Despite the last meeting falling Under the total, 12 of the 16 games played in Memphis in this series since 1996 have gone Over the total. Also since 1996, the Knicks are 45-25 ATS after a combined score of 205 points or more in three straight games. Memphis, however, is 22-9 ATS after four or more consecutive Unders over the past three seasons. The Grizzlies are expected to have both PG Mike Conley (ankle) and SG Tony Allen (wrist) back in this game while C Marc Gasol (knee) will be a game-time decision.

Can the Grizzlies stay hot with another win on Tuesday? For the answer, connect to The Platinum Sheet for all the Expert picks throughout the entire 2012-13 season. The five StatFox experts have been sizzling with a 62% ATS record (16-10) since Feb. 10, making them 53% ATS (141-127-6) since Dec. 1. StatFox Zach has a stellar 60% ATS mark (31-21-3) on Best Bets since Dec. 1 and is 55% ATS (42-35-3) on Best Bets for the season. StatFox Dave has a strong 59% ATS (33-23) Best Bets record since Dec. 1 and is 54% ATS (43-37) on Best Bets for the season, while StatFox Brian is catching fire, going 71% ATS (12-5-1) since Jan. 25 and 59% ATS (27-19-1) in Best Bets since Dec. 12.

The Knicks have been a poor offensive team all season with 97.3 PPG (21st in NBA) on 44.5% FG (19th in league) with only 20.5 APG (24th in NBA). The one thing they do thrive in, is long-range shooting, knocking down 8.9 threes per game (7th in league) on a 36.7% clip (11th in NBA). Defensively, the team is usually decent (99.1 PPG allowed, 11th in league), but allows teams to shoot 45.9% FG (10th-worst in NBA) and 36.9% threes (7th-worst in league). New York must really turn it on, as it doesn’t have a lot of time to get into a safe playoff position. Although the Knicks sit 2.5 games behind that eighth spot, they are two games behind Detroit, one-half game in front of Cleveland, and just two in front of Boston. SF Carmelo Anthony (27.3 PPG, 8.6 RPG) played excellent in the last game against the Grizzlies on Dec. 21, finishing with 30 points (11-of-22 FG), seven rebounds and two blocks. He must, however, get more help from his starting lineup this time around. The Knicks were without PG Raymond Felton (10.4 PPG, 5.9 APG) in that matchup, but the other four starters combined for 17 points in the loss. Felton has done a great job running the offense in the past five games with 37 assists (7.4 APG) and just eight turnovers (4.6 Ast/TO ratio). C Tyson Chandler (8.6 PPG, 8.8 RPG, 1.4 BPG) must be on his game whether or not Marc Gasol plays. If Gasol is out, Chandler must cause problems inside for Memphis with his size, and if Gasol plays, Chandler must be a force defensively. Although Gasol did not play in the Dec. 21 meeting, Chandler managed just eight points (2-of-7 FG), six rebounds and a minus-11 rating in 33 minutes of action. SG J.R. Smith (13.0 PPG, 4.0 RPG, 3.0 APG) and Tim Hardaway Jr. (9.2 PPG) each had 16 points in that first meeting between these two teams and both players must be similarly effective if the Knicks are going to pick up a confidence-building road victory. Smith also had seven assists, four boards and four steals in that game, but may have some issues, as he will be playing with a mask due to a fractured bone in his face suffered in a recent loss to the Thunder.

Memphis is one of the lowest-scoring offenses in the NBA at 94.7 PPG (4th-worst in league), but it makes a respectable 45.5% FG (11th in NBA) because it attempts the fewest amount of three-point shots (14.2 per game) in the entire league. While the Grizzlies are average in both rebounding (42.5 RPG, 17th in NBA) and assists (21.4 APG, 16th in league), they excel on the defensive end, allowing only 94.5 PPG (3rd-lowest in NBA) on 44.9% FG (10th in league) and 35.1% threes (9th in NBA). Memphis has won three of its past four games and will not be getting back PG Mike Conley (18.0 PPG, 6.3 APG, 1.6 SPG) who had nine points and eight assists in the last meeting with the Knicks. PG Nick Calathes (5.0 PPG, 2.7 APG) has been strong for Memphis in his absence, averaging 14.6 PPG, 5.6 APG, 5.0 RPG and 2.6 SPG over the past five contests. C Marc Gasol (13.2 PPG, 6.4 RPG, 3.5 APG, 1.1 BPG) had 18 points and seven rebounds in his last full game before suffering a knee injury and his presence will certainly be missed if he can’t give it a go in this game. PF Zach Randolph (17.5 PPG, 10.4 RPG) has great for the Grizzlies lately, averaging 18.4 PPG and 7.6 RPG over the past five games. Randolph was dominant against the Knicks in the Dec. 21 meeting, tallying 25 points (9-of-18 FG) and 15 rebounds in 38 minutes of play. SG Courtney Lee (9.9 PPG, 39% threes) has been outstanding since the Grizzlies acquired him in a trade with the Celtics, as he is averaging 13.9 PPG on 51% FG in 19 games in a Memphis uniform. His athleticism on the wing takes a lot of pressure off for the team's big men. SG Tony Allen (10.2 PPG, 3.9 RPG) could return for this game, and if he does, his defense will be relied on heavily as the Knicks get a lot of scoring from their shooting guard position.