Keeping up: Ohio State Buckeyes in the NBA, week of 1/7-1/13

Mike Conley had his best week of the regular season for the Grizzlies, scoring at least 21 points in each of Memphis' three games. Boston and Philadelphia on the other hand are mired in losing streaks, and they might be setting up a little competition to see who might get more balls in the May NBA Draft Lottery.

Mike Conley - PG - Memphis Grizzlies

What a week it was for Conley and the Grizzlies, as they won two of the three games they played. Even in the 110-108 loss to San Antonio on Tuesday, they took the Spurs to overtime. Conley poured in 30 points and had three steals against the Spurs, but that wasn't his highest scoring game of the week. In a 104-99 win on Friday night against Phoenix, Conley scored a season-high 31 points and dished out seven assists. Then for his last trick of the week, Conley registered his fourth double-double of the season, scoring 21 points and registering 13 assists in a 108-101 win over Atlanta on Sunday. In the win over the Hawks, Conley also grabbed four steals. With seven steals in three games last week, it looks like Conley's defensive game is back, after putting up below-average steal numbers to start the season.

Kosta Koufos - F/C - Memphis Grizzlies

It is sounding like Kosta Koufos' time as starter in Memphis could be coming to an end, as Marc Gasol has returned to full practice for the Grizzlies. Koufos has filled in admirably for Gasol, and has helped the Grizzlies at least stay within shouting distance of the eighth playoff spot in the Western Conference. Despite playing no more than 21 minutes in three games last week, Koufos scored at least eight points in all three games that Memphis played. Koufos' best game of the week came in the win over Atlanta, in which he scored 11 points and grabbed eight rebounds in 21 minutes. With Gasol coming back from his sprained MCL in the near future, and the ability to bring Koufos off the bench, Memphis should be a team to watch out for in the Western Conference in the second half of the season.

Evan Turner - G/F - Philadelphia 76ers

The week started with an ugly loss for Turner and the 76ers, as they fell 111-93 at Cleveland on Tuesday night. While the losses kept coming the rest of the week for the team, at least Turner played a little bit better in the next two games. Against Cleveland, Turner only scored four points on 2-13 from the field in 18 minutes. After losing to the Cavaliers by nearly 20 points, the 76ers lost each of their next two games by only 10 points. Turner's high-scoring game of the week was against Detroit on Friday, putting up 19 points in the 114-104 loss. The next night against the Knicks, Turner committed six turnovers, which didn't help the 76ers cause in the 102-92 loss to New York. Philadelphia has now lost four straight games after they showed some signs of life during a four-game winning streak on their recent west coast trip.

Jared Sullinger - F/C - Boston Celtics

After hanging around near the top of the lowly Atlantic Division for most of the first half of the season, the Celtics have been playing some really bad basketball lately. In one of the worst losses of the season for the Celtics on Tuesday night at Denver, Sullinger only played 14 minutes in the 129-98 loss. Even though their loss against the Clippers was a closer game the next night, Sullinger actually played even less, registering 12 minutes of floor time. Against Los Angeles, Sullinger was only 1-6 from the floor, scoring two points and grabbing three rebounds. The best game of the week, and closest loss for the Celtics, was on Friday night against Golden State. The Celtics fell just short in the 99-97 loss, and Sullinger put up his eighth double-double of the season with 21 points and 11 rebounds. The next night Sullinger added to his double-double total with 14 points and 10 rebounds against Portland. In the final loss of the week for Boston, Sullinger dealt with some neck spasms in the 104-92 loss to Houston, but from the sounds of it Sullinger shouldn't be sidelined due to the injury issues. Boston has now lost nine straight games, and are looking a lot like the struggling team that many thought they'd be coming into the season.

Byron Mullens - F/C - Los Angeles Clippers

After showing a little bit of scoring pop in limited action the previous week, Mullens only got onto the court once last week. In the blowout win over the team they share the Staples Center with, Mullens saw six minutes of mop-up duty against the Lakers, scoring a point and grabbing two rebounds. The Clippers look to be doing just fine without Mullens though, compiling a 26-13 record which is good enough for fourth in the Western Conference. Mullens has seen action in 22 of those 39 games, but is only averaging 6.9 minutes/game, and that isn't showing signs of changing anytime soon.