HOUSTON — There are death, taxes, and in the past six years, road losses to the Houston Rockets.

The only consolation Monday night was the Grizzlies’ latest defeat in Toyota Center ended with a competitive 97-93 loss that bucked the trend of embarrassing, lopsided games they have usually endured.

Still, the Grizzlies’ inability to score in the fourth quarter meant an end to a four-game winning streak and extended their losing streak in Houston to 11 games.

“It’s definitely something you have in the back of your minds — the fact that you haven’t won in a while,” Griz point guard Mike Conley said of their drought in Houston. “We’re aware of that (the tie-breakers), too. It was a big game for us.”

In a game knotted at 76 entering the fourth quarter, free throws decided the outcome. It’s not as if the Rockets executed their offense better were a much better executing offensive team in the final frame.

Memphis converted six field goals and Houston had five. But the Rockets made a couple of 3-pointers and all nine of their free throws while the Griz went 0-for-5 from beyond the arc and 5 of 6 from the foul line in the final frame.

After O.J. Mayo’s layup cut the Grizzlies’ deficit to 91-89 with 27 seconds left, the Rockets converted six consecutive foul shots that that allowed them to sit on a four-point cushion the rest of the way.

“It was a hard-fought game,” Griz coach Lionel Hollins said. “Both teams came out with high-power offense in the first half. In the second half, both teams shot under 40 percent and it became a grind-it-out type game. Houston made more plays than we did.”

Kyle Lowry’s 24 points, nine assists and seven rebounds led the Rockets. But Kevin Martin emphatically made his presence known.

After going scoreless in 18 minutes February 14 against the Griz, Martin made his first five shots and tossed in 22 points on 8-of-13 shooting.

“We had to go out there and play a little bit tougher than they did,” Lowry said. “In the games that we’ve played in their place, they definitely out-toughed us and tonight we made it a point to out-tough them.”

Houston’s backcourt combined to outscore Memphis’ starting guards 46-26.

“They moved the ball and were running their sets to a tee,” Griz guard Tony Allen said. “For the most part, they showed more energy and wanted to make this a 2-1 series for the season. They were the aggressors.”

Turning point

The Griz opened the fourth quarter by allowing the Rockets to score 10 unanswered points. The worst sequence happened when Mayo was called for a clear-path foul and then Courtney Lee followed with a 3-pointer that put Houston ahead 86-76 with nine minutes left.

Second-guessing

Memphis will look back on this game and regret its start. The Griz scored 28 points in the opening period but allowed 31. Houston shot 72 percent in the opening period and made 4-of-5 3-pointers.

The Rockets led 58-54 at halftime after shooting a season-high 67 percent in the first half.

“We can’t bank on them missing foul shots,” Griz forward Rudy Gay said after scoring a team-high 23 points. “We have to do our work early. We were laxed in the second half. We started off bad (in the second half) and we were fighting back ever since then.”

Hot topic

Marreese Speights entered the game averaging 12.6 points and 10.9 rebounds for the Grizzlies over the past seven contests. He amassed 12 points and seven boards against the Rockets. Speights is playing to his potential with Memphis — something he feels like he wasn’t given the chance to do with his former team, Philadelphia.

“I’m just going to go out like it’s another game,” Speights said of facing Philadelphia for the first time since he was traded. “I want to start out the game really good and help us win. It’s the league. There are no hard feelings. I got a chance to play here.”

Spotlight

Martin came out and calmly sank his first shot — a 3-pointer over Allen’s reach with slightly more than 10 minutes left in the first quarter. Martin had 18 points on 6 of 7 shooting by halftime. Martin also lulled Allen into two fouls within the game’s first four minutes. Allen started the second half by stopping an official to say: “The only way Kevin Martin scores is when he flops and plays like a …”

That’s what he said

“Kyle was the difference. He controlled the game. It’s tough when he plays like that – when he drives and shoots like that. He played well.” — Gay, talking about his former teammate Lowry.

The other guys

The Rockets were particularly effective in pick-and-rolls. They led by seven early in the third before the Grizzlies’ came back to tie the score at 76 entering the fourth. But Houston’s defense held Memphis without a field goal in the fourth until Allen’s fast-break layup with 5:44 remaining.

Health status

Sam Young dressed and was available after missing several games due to a right ankle sprain. The Grizzlies also enjoy the presence of Zach Randolph, who is closer to returning from a knee injury. Randolph made the trip and was seen shooting on the court before the game.

Miscellany

Martin was shooting 36.1 percent from the field and averaging 11.4 points over his last nine contests before the game. …The Griz shot 48 percent. They averaged 52.3 percent in the first two meetings with the Rockets. …Houston recalled forward Marcus Morris from the NBA Development League while leaving former Griz center Hasheem Thabeet on the inactive list. …Memphis outscored Houston, 58-38 in the paint. …Griz center Marc Gasol led the team in assists for the first time this season with five.

Attendance

12,525. The Rockets average about 14,473 this season but that’s a serious decline from previous years when attendance rounded out at 16-17,000. What’s bad is the Rockets have experienced worse crowds this season despite being in the playoff picture.

Records

Memphis fell to 18-15 — one game behind Houston for the sixth seed and a game ahead of ninth-place Portland. Houston (19-14) has won two in a row overall and its second straight game at home after beating Utah on Sunday.

Got next

Philadelphia 76ers at Grizzlies, 7 p.m., tonight. The Sixers have dropped three straight and six of their last 10.