passing off pick-and-rolls or attacking when Gasol and Randolph draw more atte | Forum

BOISE, Idaho -- Sam Ryder, Adam Schenk and Keith Mitchell each shot 7-under 64 on Thursday to share the first-round lead in the Web.com Tour Finals Albertsons Boise Open.Ryder birdied the first four holes and five of the first six at Hillcrest Country Club. The 26-year-old former Stetson player, 31st on the Web.com Tour regular-season money list, bogeyed the ninth, birdied the 12th and eagled the par-5 16th.I birdied my first four holes, so that never hurts, Ryder said. I just drove it well, drove it in the fairway for the most part, and I just holed a couple putts early. Thats kind of been the difference maker for me -- the putter. When I manage to make some putts, Ive been able to put some good scores together. So seeing some putts go in early jump-started the round for me.Schenk had nine birdies -- the last a 35-footer on the par-4 18th -- and two bogeys. The 24-year-old former Purdue player was 40th on the Web.com Tour regular-season money list.Got off to a nice start early. Didnt make many mistakes out there really, Schenk said. Hit a lot of wedges at the pin. On this golf course, if you hit wedges good, you can shoot a good number because you have so many of them. And made a couple long putts like on the last hole, so if you can some putts and hit your wedges good, youre going to shoot a low one.Mitchell eagled the par-4 ninth and had six birdies and a bogey. The 24-year-old former Georgia player was 70th on the Web.com Tour regular-season money list.I was kind of in control of my game, Mitchell said. I started off a little shaky and had to drop on the second hole. I missed a couple of greens to start, but my short game was doing well today, and it kept me in it. I made a few putts the rest of the way.The tournament is the second in the four-event series features the top 75 players from the Web.com Tour money list, Nos. 126-200 in the PGA Tours FedEx Cup standings and some non-members with enough PGA Tour money to have placed in the top 200 in the FedEx Cup had he been eligible.The top 25 players on the Web.com Tour regular-season money list earned PGA Tour cards. They are competing against each other for tour priority, with regular-season earnings counting in their totals. The other players are fighting for 25 cards based on series earnings.Its crazy ... three more rounds away from potentially getting a PGA Tour card, which sounds kind of crazy, Schenk said. You cant get ahead of yourself, but if I play three more solid rounds, Ill have a good chance, but there will be some low scores this week.Rory Sabbatini Ryan Brehm, Brett Drewitt and Hiroshi Iwata shot 65, and Stuart Appleby, Scott Stallings, Andrew Johnston, Ollie Schniederjans, Trey Mullinax, Xander Schauffele, Julian Etulain, Matt Jones, Rob Oppenheim and Luke Guthrie were at 66.Bryson DeChambeau opened with a 69. He won the series-opening DAP Championship last week in a playoff in Ohio to wrap up a PGA Tour card.Defending champion Martin Piller had five bogeys in a 75. MEMPHIS, Tenn. -- The Grizzlies have repeatedly been asked who will take the game-winning shot since the Rudy Gay trade on Jan. 30. Mike Conley has been the answer during the playoffs. The point guard scored 13 of his 26 points Tuesday night in the fourth quarter, helping the Grizzlies beat Oklahoma City 99-93 and even this Western Conference semifinal at 1-1. He also had 10 rebounds and nine assists to join Michael Jordan, LeBron James and Baron Davis as the only players with such a performance in a road playoff game in the past 25 years. "After we lost Rudy, it was tough," Conley said. "We didnt know who was going to be that guy down the stretch. Ive kind of had to assume that role, grow into it and live and learn from it. Sometimes I make shots, sometimes I dont. Im kind of getting used to it." Conley has been at his best over the past four games for Memphis, averaging 20.5 points with 5.5 rebounds and 6.3 assists as the Grizzlies finished off the Clippers in the first round and got the split in Oklahoma City. His biggest shot was a 3-pointer with 1:58 left that put Memphis ahead to stay in Game 2 followed by an 18-foot jumper. If not for a Tony Allen miss late, Conley would have had a triple-double. "I take that personally," Thunder guard Reggie Jackson said. "I almost gave the guy a triple-double. I cant let that happen again. I feel the great players always take things personally -- the match-ups -- and like Ive said since day one, I want to be great. So, I have to do a better job of slowing him down and not letting the head of the snake bite us next game." Game 3 is Saturday in Memphis. Since the trade, Conley said hes worked on handling both the blame that comes with missing shots along with the attention that comes with being the guy everyone looks to at the end of games. Its been an adjustment for a six-year veteran long accustomed to distributing the ball and playing hard on defence. He led the NBA in total steals this season with a career-high 174. Part of his learning curve also included not getting too excited with the clock running down and the team needing a key bucket.dddddddddddd "I think thats helped me be more calm down the stretch and realizing situations and being patient," Conley said Thursday after practice. He started blossoming as a key scorer since the All-Star break. Conley led the Grizzlies after the break with the best scoring stretch of his career as he led the team in scoring 10 of their final 17 games. He scored at least 20 points in 12 of those games, averaging 17.6 points in March and 17 in April. Its why Allen believes Conley is among the leagues top five point guards. "Hes been doing everything," Allen said. "Assists, points, rebounds, steals and most importantly hes winning." Conley definitely has been more aggressive. Grizzlies centre Marc Gasol said Conley doesnt have to take 20 shots a game, though the guard hit 11 of 22 from the floor in Game 2. Coming off screens and forcing the Thunder defence to play honest also is a big part of what they need. "Im really proud of him, but were not satisfied. Im not," Gasol said. "The one position to me, one of the toughest ones to play because everyones always looking up to you, and we put a lot of pressure, at least I am, I put a lot of pressure on Mike and Im really hard on Mike a lot of times. But he knows I love him, and hes always the best and I expect more." The Thunder saw Conley in 2011 when these teams went seven games in the Western semifinals before Oklahoma City won. Oklahoma City forward Nick Collison said Conley has gotten better since then. He sees Conley being aggressive in his decisions passing off pick-and-rolls or attacking when Gasol and Randolph draw more attention. Thunder coach Scott Brooks isnt happy Conley got so many chances to score in the paint early along with five layups in the second half. Brooks said they knew going into this series that Conley is a good player. "Hes a problem that we have to make sure that we control," Brooks said. AP Sports Writer Jeff Latzke in Oklahoma City, Okla., contributed to this report. ' ' '