Zach Randolph wasn’t happy about the officiating in Thursday’s Grizzlies-Rockets game. The NBA wasn’t happy about Randolph’s opinion of the officiating.
Randolph was fined $25,000 by the NBA on Friday for his postgame comments about the referees, whom he called “horrible” and “awful.”
The Grizzlies led for much of the nationally televised game before things turned in the fourth quarter, when the Rockets scored 34 points and rallied for a 100-92 victory.
“It was the refs tonight,” Randolph said afterward. “Eight against five. The game in the second half, a man was shooting free throws every time. We were out there playing hard, and they were dictating the game. It can’t be like that. We are out there playing, too.
“It was horrible refereeing, it was a horrible game they reffed tonight. Awful. They dictated the game. We are out there working as hard as them.”
Memphis was called for 30 fouls and shot 20 free throws. Houston was called for 19 fouls and shot 40 free throws. In the final period, the Rockets shot 20 free throws to seven for the Grizzlies, including a technical called against Randolph for arguing.
Rockets guard James Harden shot 25 free throws, making 22. At the same time, Rockets center Dwight Howard was limited to 18 minutes by foul trouble.