The Grizzlies returned to Memphis in the middle of an eight-game road trip to face off against the Los Angeles Lakers for the third time this season. Rui Hachimura and LeBron James led the Lakers to a 136-124 victory over the Grizzlies, despite strong performances from Desmond Bane and Jake LaRavia.
The game heralded the return of big man Brandon Clarke, who has been sidelined since March 2023 with an Achilles injury. Clarke was met with cheers from the home crowd when he took the court, and he notched six points and five rebounds in his return.
Grizzlies’ head coach Taylor Jenkins remarked postgame that Clarke had “brought great energy on both sides of the floor” in his return. Barring any complications, Clarke will play the remaining nine games of the season.
Lakers’ forward Rui Hachimura continues to be a thorn in the Grizzlies’ side, putting up a game-high 32 points and 10 rebounds, including a career-high seven made 3-pointers. Los Angeles was on the second night of back-to-back games, after defeating the Milwaukee Bucks in double overtime the previous night.
While the Grizzlies would ultimately lose the game, they were able to close the third quarter on an 18-0 run, cutting a 27-point Lakers lead to seven. They outrebounded the Lakers 13-4 in offensive rebounds and outscored them 18-7 in second-chance points, and 56-42 in the paint.
Los Angeles outscored Memphis 25-15 in fastbreak points and converted 14 Grizzlies’ turnovers into 22 points for the Lakers. They also outshot the Grizzlies 35-19 from the free-throw line.
Desmond Bane had a team-high 26 points, four rebounds, and a career-high 16 assists.
Jaren Jackson Jr. added 17 points, nine rebounds, three assists, three steals, and one block.
Scotty Pippen Jr. finished the night with 11 points, two rebounds, two assists, two steals, and one block, and GG Jackson added 10 points and four rebounds.
Off the bench, Jake LaRavia put up a career-high 25 points, six rebounds, and four assists while shooting 7 of 9 from three-point range, and Lamar Stevens had 11 points, four rebounds, and two assists.
Who Got Next?
The Grizzlies will hit the road again, heading to Orlando to face off against the Magic on Saturday, March 30th. Tip-off is at 6 p.m. CDT.
