The Grizzlies snapped a seven-game losing streak Saturday night with a win over a depleted Minnesota Timberwolves team:
1. Finally, a Win: Okay, so it wasn’t an impressive win: The Timberwolves are one of only three teams with a worse record than the Grizzlies (also: Knicks, Nets) and heading into tonight were the only team with a worse point differential. The Wolves, already missing their second best player, Kevin Love, all season, were playing tonight without their best, Al Jefferson. They were also coming into Memphis on the second night of a back-to-back set against a Grizzlies team coming off two days rest. And the Wolves threw out potentially one of the worst starting lineups you will ever see in a regulation NBA game: Jonny Flynn, Corey Brewer, Ryan Gomes, Nathan Jawai, and Ryan Hollins.
Despite all this, the Grizzlies had trouble shaking the Wolves, going into halftime with a 45-45 tie before turning up the defensive intensity and pulling away. But, hey, with all the losses and upheaval the Grizzlies have been dealing with lately, they’ll take it: “It’s a big win for us from that perspective,” coach Lionel Hollins said of breaking the seven-game losing streak. “You have to get some wins so [the players] will believe in the system and believe in themselves.”
