The Memphis Grizzlies were at home Wednesday night for the first of a two-game homestand, facing off against Jimmy Butler and the Miami Heat.
They finished on the losing end of a 108-102 final score. Memphis has now moved to 1-7 on the season and are still looking to get their first home win. As the team with formerly the best home record in the league, to be winless on the home court is alarming, to say the least.
There are 17 more games left until Ja Morant returns from suspension and if the team keeps playing this way, they may well be 1-24 by the time he gets back.
As per what seems to be the new usual, the Grizzlies struggled in the first quarter, falling behind by double-digits. They were able to cut Miami’s lead to 7 heading into the second quarter.
Miami’s Tyler Herro went down with roughly a minute left in the period and went immediately to the locker room when he left the court. Herro did not return to the lineup.
Luke Kennard seems to have recovered from his concussion, and how. He made three consecutive three-pointers midway through the first quarter, giving Memphis a sorely needed offensive boost. By the end of the quarter, Kennard had a team-high 11 points. Unfortunately, Kennard only scored two more points the rest of the night.
The Grizzlies did a good job in the first half of the second quarter slowing down Miami’s offense but they couldn’t keep that energy up for the whole period. The Grizzlies had eight more shot attempts than the Heat but were still down by eight at the midway point, 54-46.
Miami got to the free throw line 17 times in the first half, compared to Memphis’ eight attempts.
Memphis had the first possession of the third quarter, which turned into a made three-pointer by Desmond Bane. Memphis went on outscore Miami 30-23 in the quarter, and the score was 77-76 heading into the final frame.
Miami had the ball for the first possession in the fourth, which was promptly stolen by Santi Aldama, who then made a clutch three-point basket to put Memphis up 79-77. And then it all fell apart again.
Memphis got in the penalty with 7:21 left in the fourth quarter and Miami went up 98-88 with just under four minutes left. Aldama hits another clutch three to pull the Grizzlies within three with 35.5 seconds remaining. Then Jaime Jaquez Jr answered with a three of his own to put the final nail in the Grizzlies’ coffin. And that was the ballgame. Woof.
The Grizzlies had 13 more shot attempts than the Heat and still lost. Miami won the battle of the boards, 44-38, and grabbed 10 more defensive rebounds than Memphis.
Memphis had no answer for Bam Adebayo, who was getting everything he wanted on offense, lighting it up from midrange. Adebayo finished with a game-high 30 points, plus 11 rebounds, and 3 blocks.
Jaren Jackson Jr led Memphis with 28 points, 4 rebounds, 2 assists, and 1 steal. Jackson was the only Grizzly to score more than 20 points. Desmond Bane finished the night with 15 points, 5 rebounds, 3 assists, 1 steal, and 2 blocks. Marcus Smart put up 11 points, 4 rebounds, 7 assists, and 2 steals.
From the second unit, Santi Aldama contributed 12 points, 8 rebounds, and 2 steals, while Luke Kennard put up 13 points, 2 rebounds, and 3 assists. Aldama and Kennard combined for 25 of 37 points from the bench.
Who Got Next?
The Grizzlies will face off against the Utah Jazz on Friday, November 10th, in their second in-season tournament game. Tip-off is at 7 PM CST.
