MEMPHIS, Tenn. -- Scoring his team's first 16 points should have been the tipoff. Memphis Grizzlies center Marc Gasol was going to be a challenge for the Toronto Raptors to defend Wednesday night at FedExForum.

When the final horn sounded -- a few seconds after the Raptors' Kyle Lowry misfired from beyond the arc on a potential game-winner -- Gasol had scored a career-high 42 points to lead the Grizzlies to a 101-99 victory.

Gasol, expected to be named Thursday as a reserve on the Western Conference All-Star team, made 14 of 25 shots, including a career-best five 3-pointers. His previous career-high point total was 38, which he had achieved twice -- the last coming Dec. 21 at Detroit.

"The ball went in early and then the rim got a little bigger," Gasol said. "And I just kept shooting."

Gasol sealed the game with two free throws with 36.3 seconds to go. Lowry, who led the Raptors with 29 points, missed the potential game-winner from 28 feet at the buzzer.

Gasol's point total was only the 10th of 40 or more points in franchise history and the most since his brother, Pau, scored 43 at Golden State in January 2008.

Gasol had 19 in the first quarter on 7-of-11 shooting, which included three 3-pointers.

"I think we all saw it right from the beginning," Grizzlies coach David Fizdale said. "He had a goal in mind tonight that he was not going to go down watching.

"This is why I've been pushing him. I've really just pushed him to get out of his comfort zone and look to get aggressive about scoring the ball. He is really embracing that role for us. It's not his nature."

Fizdale has said Gasol is unselfish, but he has told him he is being selfish by not utilizing all of his skills.

"I made plays when I was supposed to. I was aggressive," Gasol said. "When I caught it and didn't have the shot, I drove it and tried to make plays for somebody else."

Gasol posted back-to-back games of 30 points for only the second time in his career, but he spoke as if it won't be the last time.

"I'll do it," he said of taking nearly a third of the team's shots. "Obviously it's a different mindset. But I think in the last few games I've been trying to do it a little bit more. And I'm going to keep doing it."

Gasol has stepped up his offense in the past five games; his 30.8 points per game equal the highest five-game average of his career.

"It's been so much fun to watch, so much fun to be a part of," said Grizzlies guard Mike Conley, who scored 11 points Wednesday. "Tonight was something special. It got to the point where everybody was trying to get him the ball, wherever we were on the court."

The Raptors, who lost their fifth straight, played without injured guard DeMar DeRozan, the NBA's sixth-leading scorer at 27.9 points per game. He sprained his right ankle Sunday and missed his second straight game.

Still, Toronto battled to the final seconds and overcame a 12-point deficit (99-87) with 4:47 left to tie the game at 99 with just over a minute remaining.

"I loved our competitive spirit down the stretch," Toronto coach Dwane Casey said. "But we've got to extend that. We've got to do it earlier in the game. We've got to come out and put our foot down."

Memphis got 16 points from Zach Randolph and a double-double from Tony Allen, who finished with 15 points and 11 rebounds.

Norman Powell scored 21 for Toronto, which outscored the Grizzlies in the paint (46-44) and on second-chance points (23-7).

The Grizzlies played without starting forward JaMychal Green, who was a late scratch with a left knee injury. Memphis also played without starting forward Chandler Parsons (right knee). Parsons missed his 28th game.

With Gasol scoring all of the points, Memphis led 16-6 with 8:40 to go in the first quarter. But the Raptors quickly recovered behind Powell, who had 12 first-quarter points.

Toronto led 34-32 at the end of the quarter as it shot 59.1 percent, just slightly lower than the Grizzlies, who were a Gasol-driven 12-of-19 shooting in the period for 63.2 percent. Gasol scored 19 points.

In the second quarter, the Raptors built a seven-point lead on two occasions and held a 57-56 halftime advantage.

Gasol had 23 points at the half on 8-of-14 shooting. Powell had 14.

In the third quarter, the Grizzlies pulled ahead. They outscored the Raptors 31-20 and held them to 30.4 percent (7-of-23) shooting for an 87-77 lead. Memphis ended the period on a 9-2 run, capped by James Ennis, who drained a corner 3-pointer in the closing seconds. Gasol added 13 points in the quarter, including two 3-pointers.

NOTES: Memphis begins a 10-day, six-game trip Friday at Portland. It will be the team's longest since a six-game trip in March and April 2007. ... Toronto G DeMar DeRozan missed his second straight game with a sprained right ankle, an injury he suffered in a 115-103 loss to the Phoenix Suns on Sunday. DeRozan had played in each of the team's first 44 games and in 78 of 82 last season. He has missed five or more games only once in his seven-year career (21 games in 2014-15 because of a groin injury). ... Grizzlies G Troy Daniels (right knee) and F/C Brandan Wright (left ankle) continue to make progress from their injuries, but they did not play against Toronto.